A visit to Binga District

Zimbabwe is a land of struggle and hope and transformation. Today - more than in a very long time there is a sense of hope bordering on the possibility of significant change. Time will tell but indicators include much greater freedom of speech, a minimal police presence on the roads (ie very few roadblocks) and political discussion everywhere. Elections are to be held in July this year and that will be a landmark defining how the immediate future will unfold. People want and expect change!

It was a unique opportunity to visit Zimbabwe  as part of our travels in the region. Upon arriving at the Joshua Nkomo
Airport in Bulawayo we were warmly greeting by long time colleagues from the MCC office. It was good to be back having last been here in 2015.


As we drove to town from the airport we received an unexpected invitation to participate in a road trip to Binga District to visit some community based schools we had previously been involved with. Early the next morning the team headed out. It was to be a 10 hour trip (on day one) stretching some 500 kms with stops at 5 schools. We drove through woodlands, past Hwange National Park and into the lowlands surrounding Lake Kariba.

An outdoor blackboard - a remainder of the past

Siamatelele Secondary School is a success story in the midst of extreme hardship. This school is in a remote area of Matabeleland North. In 2013 most all of the classes where held under the trees. Students periodically could not get to school due to lions or elephants blocking their path (how's that for an excuse for not getting your homework in on time?). The determination of the headmistress, however, made all the difference. She grew up in the community and was determined to ensure that future students would get the education they  wanted and needed.

In 2015 MCC agreed, in collaboration with 5 schools in the region, to support the building of essential school infrastructure through a unique partnership with key donors in Europe and Canada. The end product of this at Siamatelele is a school that can house all it's students indoors and meet qualifications for official registration. It was exciting to see the progress made.

At the end of the day we rested our travel weary bodies at Ganda Lodge - close to Hwange National Park. It was a memorable way to end a memorable day. As the sun set we watched the elephants tussle at the water hole and the antelope settle for the night. The raucous baboons found their roosts for the night - safely out of reach of potential predators and the crowned cranes finally stopped their calls to one another.


Early the next morning we woke to the roar of lions calling through the pre-morning darkness. As soon as light crept into the sky I got up and warmed myself by the fire the night watchman had kept going. Together we tracked four lions making their way around the water hole in front of the lodge. As soon as they were gone the baboons crawled down from their refuge and walked to the plains to feed. At that I made a cup of coffee, breathed deeply the fresh air of a new day and gave thanks for this gift of time in Zimbabwe.