Key points:
- With financial support from Zimbabwe Volunteers in Mission and the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries’ Yambasu Agriculture Initiative, the Hanwa community constructed two half-acre greenhouses to fight climate change.
- Charlie Moore, Zimbabwe Volunteers in Mission team leader from the Baltimore-Washington Conference, said the team hopes the project enables Hanwa Mission to enhance educational opportunities and help the schools achieve financial sustainability.
- Church leaders said the greenhouses will lead to better harvests and energy savings and may inspire other schools to follow suit.
Two “life-transforming” greenhouses at The United Methodist Church’s Hanwa Mission are helping to fight climate change and grow education at the mission’s schools.
With financial support from Zimbabwe Volunteers in Mission and the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries’ Yambasu Agriculture Initiative, the Hanwa community constructed two half-acre greenhouses.
The Rev. Alan Masimba Gurupira, administrative assistant for Zimbabwe Area Bishop Eben K. Nhiwatiwa, called the development “a milestone in the life of the mission center.”
“It is the firm belief of The UMC, together with our devoted partners, that such a venture will lead the schools into an era of self-sufficiency and in spearheading other developmental programs,” Gurupira said. The horticultural venture, he noted, will form the backbone of other innovative programs to follow.
Charlie Moore, Zimbabwe Volunteers in Mission team leader from the Baltimore-Washington Conference, said the team hopes the project enables Hanwa Mission to enhance educational opportunities and help its schools achieve financial sustainability.
“These greenhouses will become a major component of the agricultural curriculum at the Hanwa Mission schools, and a major proportion of the funds generated by this project will go directly back into the schools,” he said. “This financial infusion will assist in providing much-needed resources to the faculty and students.”
Zimbabwe Volunteers in Mission, with grant support from the Baltimore-Washington Conference, funded $50,000 of the project cost.
The Rev. Future Sibanda, Hanwa Mission station chair, said Hanwa is in a farm resettlement area with an economic base of agriculture, but it was facing challenges in enhancing production.
“Parents rely on rainfed farming, and in case of adverse climate change, they harvest nothing. This impacts negatively on payment of school fees and subsequent development of the school. By establishing this technology, we (are) generating income for the institute and imparting knowledge and skills to the learners.”
He said each greenhouse can generate about $56,000 to $60,000 per year. Money generated from the project will enrich educational development.
“Only a quarter of my students (can) pay school fees,” said Lindiwe Paridzai Mupanduki, Hanwa Secondary school headmistress. “This impacts negatively on the running of the school.
“I am on a prayer and fasting program. I had reached a point of wanting to step down because I am failing to pay the ancillary staff members who are also threatening to quit.”
The Rev. Eddimore Sango, connectional ministries director for the Murewa Uzumba Maramba Pfungwe District, said the project also will help learners interested in agriculture venture into farming.
Agriculture teacher Tichaona Cornelius Dzvinamurungu said the greenhouses have made his life easier. “When I conduct a theory lesson in class and practical lessons in the greenhouse, the information will sink in their minds easily.
“Learners had mixed feelings in the first days after establishing the greenhouse. When I explained the advantages of the technology, this helped improve their engagement. Even when they go into the world, I will not fear because they will have grasped the basic concept.”
Tadiwanashe Makebhe, 19, said he is grateful to the church for the technologies they have introduced to students, noting that the mission school is one of the best in Macheke.
“We are enjoying the new technology. After being taught in class, we come here and do our practicals. It was difficult to imagine what a greenhouse was and how it operates, but now we can explain eloquently and with confidence.
“With the knowledge and skills, we are gaining,” Makebhe continued, “we have become the light in the community. This is what development is all about. It should have a source and should spread like veldfire.”
He said as a junior councilor, his role is to bring development to the community.
“We have planted bell peppers. We were taught that the conditions in the greenhouse have been controlled to suit the crop so they grow faster and produce high-quality produce that will fetch more on the market. We are here to experience it.
“I am envisaging having a variety of crop produce year-round at Hanwa and the community buying them and improving dietary diversity,” he added. “My wish is to replicate this model, even on a small scale, when I leave Hanwa.”
Student Rumbidzai Makoni, 17, sees many benefits to the greenhouses.
“Not all of us are gifted academically, but for those of us gifted in agriculture, this is a great opportunity. One can be self-reliant after establishing a homemade greenhouse using the concept we learned here. When we sell the produce, we can earn foreign currency and live a better life.
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“I foresee enrollment improving. Many children will get an opportunity to access basic education because the school will pay fees for the less-privileged using proceeds from the greenhouse. I am proud of my school.”
The project also generates employment for parents of students. Gilbert Mundiya, 34, of Lindin village is among those who have secured jobs.
“When the school recruited workers, I was lucky to be one of them. To me, half a loaf is better than nothing. I earn a living through farming. This is a drought year, and we did not harvest anything. Therefore, the little I earn here will make my life easier.
“I am now able to pay school fees for my child who is here. I am also able to provide food on the table.” He noted that his marriage and family life have improved.
“In addition,” Mundiya said, “In society, we are now the torchbearers of greenhouse technology. We have gained respect.”
Arnold Mucheteko, a worker from Chizhanje B village, said he is “earning while learning.”
“I believe that by the time we have run a few seasons, I will have learned how to establish and manage my own greenhouse. If I had opted to remain in the village, I would not have learned all this, been able to pay school fees for my children or support my family,” he said. “I am grateful to Hanwa for this initiative — a life-transforming project.”
Dzidzai Caleb Munhutu, Agriculture Committee technical chair for The United Methodist Church in Zimbabwe, said the greenhouses will lead to better harvests and energy savings.
“Greenhouse technology is key in improving productivity, particularly in high-value horticulture crops, as it increases heat units within the structure. To complement this factor, drip irrigation technology ensures consistent, efficient water usage by plants, yet saving big on energy.
“The beds have been well-prepared, as evidenced by the friable, loose and well-aerated soil. This enables roots to develop as they draw water from the ground. With proper nourishment, crop growth and establishment is enormous, offering a good chance to withstand insect and disease pressure.”
Morgan Jeranyama, Yambasu Agriculture Initiative national consultant in Zimbabwe, said the project enriched the water-supply system and storage facilities. The institution also benefited from two 10,000-litre (2,642-gallon) water tanks and a solar-powered borehole.
“GBGM has supplied fencing and 5,000 red and yellow pepper seedlings, as well as a hand tractor, a trailer, a plow and pedi-wheels to the tune of about USD$30,000, necessary for efficient running of the project,” he said. A million onion seedlings will follow.
Partners also are exploring drawing water from a nearby dam. A 100-horsepower pump has already been secured for an open-field horticulture project.
The Rev. Paul Mazumba, Murewa Uzumba Maramba Pfungwe District superintendent, said the role of the church is to spearhead development in the community and noted that The United Methodist Church is known for pioneering education in remote rural areas, where mostly disadvantaged communities reside.
“I am glad that other sister schools of The UMC … have developed interest in such projects. Who knows, maybe non-UMC schools are feeling the same,” he said. “This is what development is all about. It is like fire, which can easily spread.”
Chingwe is a communicator for the Zimbabwe East Conference.
News media contact: Julie Dwyer at newsdesk@umnews.org. To read more United Methodist news, subscribe to the free Daily or Weekly Digests.
