Frustrated by government’s failure to build health facilities, some villagers in Matabeleland South’s Matobo district are pulling resources together to build a clinic in the Ratanyana area.
The initiative under the Marko Ward Development Initiatives (MWDI) came after villagers from Ward 4, commonly known as Marko Ward under Chief Nyangazonke, waited for over two decades for the government to build them a health facility.
In 1999 government officials urged the villagers to mould bricks for the construction of the clinic on the understanding that they will be supported with other building materials, but nothing materialised.
The community decided to take matters into their own hands in 2020 and pushed for the completion of the project.
Ward 4 councillor Mxolisi Ncube told Southern Eye on Sunday that the villagers started the project during the lockdown period when they realised that they were on their own.
“This project is now 100% community funded, this community has organised itself in groups known as constituencies or chapters,” Ncube said.
He hailed the community for being united in the initiative.
The MWDI consists of people from Marko Ward, who are now living in the United Kingdom, South Africa, United States, Germany, Botswana and Ireland, among other countries.
- Frustrated Matobo villagers build their own clinic
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There are also locals across the country that contribute to the initiative. They have so far constructed two blocks with modern toilets.
Four staff cottages would be completed by August 2025 together with a shelter for expecting mothers and an incinerator as well as a 10 kilowatts solar system.
Ncube said they were expecting the clinic to be commissioned during the festive season this year.
“We are targeting to finish the clinic by the end of this year because according to the specifications from the Ministry of Health and Child Care, we need two more blocks and having done that the clinic will be commissioned just before Christmas or New Year's Eve,” he said.
For now the nearest health facilities are Maphisa Hospital which is 25 kilometers and Homestead Clinic is 10 kilometers away as well as Tshelanyemba Hospital.
Ncube decried corruption in the country saying it was a major setback which delaying development.
“If you look at how our government is infested with corruption, thieving and all these other things then you will understand that you can't get good services,” he said.
“The challenge that we have in Zimbabwe right now is that if you really want to wait for the government you won’t get anything.”
MWDI chairperson Douglas George appealed for well-wishers to support their project as they still needed a lot of resources.
“We have completed and roofed the two blocks and the toilet block. We are now busy with the plastering. Next we would like to fence the perimeter and construct four staff quarters,” George said.
“We are still being funded by the community, and are appealing for whatever assistance we can get.
“We need to complete the construction so that the clinic can be commissioned in order for it to benefit the intended beneficiaries>
Over the years, the community has managed to drill boreholes, build three bridges and repair classroom blocks blown by the wind at Ratanyane and Mashumba primary schools.
Ncube said thet also sponsor three local soccer teams and two netball teams.
“We are also in the process of establishing a goat farming project for those in the diaspora wishing to come back home,” he said.
