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Rumbidzayi Zinyuke Senior Reporter
THE empowerment of the girl child and vulnerable communities has a major role to play in improving the self-sustainability of Zimbabweans as the country works towards the attainment of Vision 2030.

While the Government is committed to improving livelihoods in communities, gaps still exist in models being used.

First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa has in the past few years, been leading from the front in addressing issues such as poverty, hunger and disease, which affect women, children and vulnerable communities.

The First Lady has also been instrumental in the setting up nutritional gardens for communities to achieve food self-sufficiency for members who can sell surplus vegetables to generate income.

It is with this in mind that Knowstics Academy in Mutasa District, Manicaland, has invited her to visit the school and assess some of the projects being done that dovetail with her efforts.

According to Knowstics Academy co-director, Mrs Edith Makuwapasi, the projects being done by the school are in line with Amai Mnangagwa’s efforts as they are a way of empowering pupils to come up with solutions to problems being faced in the country. Knowstics Academy’s pass rate has also been phenomenal in both quantity and quality. The academy came first in the November 2019 Zimbabwe School Examination Council (ZIMSEC) examinations with 39 pupils scoring 15 points and above at Advanced Level. The school also had the best Ordinary and A’ level Cambridge results in the country. Of note, is that some of these high achievers came from the community surrounding the school.

Mrs Mukuwapasi said this focus gelled with the First Lady’s initiative of helping girls from Grade 6 to Upper Sixth Form realise their full potential.

She said pupils were being taught to become self-sustainable from an early age and to aim to be producers.

“Our children are exposed to means of production as well as the tools for production.

“We are self-reliant and we process and value add all that we are taking from agriculture.

“About 90 percent of the food consumed at the school is produced here,” she said.

She said the school was producing potatoes, mushroom and had a sustainable supply of maize for their consumption and also for stock feed.

They were also raising layers, broilers and road runners and also had a dairy project that supplied products to the school.

And all this is being done by the pupils themselves.

In line with the First Lady’s nutrition gardens project, Knowstics Farm was launching a nursery to supply seedlings and organic manure as well as providing technical know-how to locals who were interested in venturing into farming.

Mrs Mukuwapasi said the academy was also keen on equipping the learners to come up with solutions to modern-day problems.

In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the school was putting final touches to a clinic that had been constructed. The clinic is meant to minimise pupils’ contact with the outside world as a prevention measure, but it would also be used as training ground for learners interested in becoming doctors or nurses.

“The academy has also opened an Alchemy Department which is producing personal protective equipment that includes face masks, hand sanitisers and disinfectants, among others. We will also be training other schools on how to start producing their own sanitisers to promote self-reliance,” she said.

The Alchemy Department resonates with the First Lady’s initiative to educate communities across the country on Covid-19, ways of preventing the disease as well as the proper use of face masks.

Mrs Mukuwapasi said the school would hand over a brick moulding machine, a water purification machine, a smoking and drying pot, an oil pressing machine as well as sanitisers to the First Lady, which they feel would help in her endeavours to assist the communities she works with.

One of the A’ level pupils at the academy, Nancy Karedza said she was looking forward to the visit by the First lady as it was an opportunity to show her how they were not only challenging the academics, but taking on productivity and preparing for a better future for themselves.