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Herald Reporter

Local churches under the banner of Zimbabwe Heads of Christian Denominations (ZHOCD), say they have embraced the devolution concept being driven by the Government to develop communities, with congregants now actively participating in devolution initiatives.

ZHOCD said its members from marginalised communities were now realising the fruits of participating in devolution programmes in Manicaland province.

The grouping, which operates in five districts of Manicaland province, is made up of the Zimbabwe Council of Churches (ZCC), UDACIZA, Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops Conference (ZCBC), Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe (EFZ) and the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace (CCJP).

ZHOCD says it has engaged church members from different denominations to take an interest in the use of devolution money.

Speaking during the provincial review meeting held at Maunganidze United Church of Christ in Zimbabwe (UCCZ), ZCC Manicaland project coordinator Mr Reginald Ngwenya said since churches from various denominations joined hands to complement Government programmes, they were noting great in improvements on congregants’ appreciation of devolution issues.

“There was a challenge from churches of not playing a role in Government programmes such as devolution, which is being implemented by the Second Republic to develop communities,” Mr Ngwenya.

“With our initiative of mobilising church structures to have a say in the implementation of devolution programmes, we have seen improvements in service delivery.

“Church members are now being consulted and are part of the programmes. We have also seen the increased transparency and accountability by local authorities and other community development funds which are channelled to Government institutions such as DDF, Department of Roads and legislators’ funds.”

He added that there was also a rise in the number of women taking part in decision-making since they are the most affected by under-development in the communities.

“Since churches command a huge number of followers, we will continue communicating Government programmes right down to the district and the grassroots,” he said.

Another church denomination representative, Reverend Maxwell Chizumba, said churches play a key role in promoting Government blueprints so that the goal of leaving no one and no place behind is achieved.

“The church has huge followers and all the members should be enlightened so that they actively participate in programmes that uplift their lives,” he said.

UDACIZA representative, Mrs Marrian Tsvakai, urged church members to take advantage of the programmes rolled out by the Government to uplift themselves from poverty.

“For a long time, churches were not participating in decision-making, especially on issues such as budget consultations.

“Our organisation is happy now that our members are participating in these programmes. We have managed to roll out dialogue with Government institutions telling the people what projects are up for grabs,” she said.