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Tafadzwa Zimoyo Senior Lifestyle Writer

A girl’s best friends are diamonds and pearls.

What if a girl can be courageous enough to play with lions, zebras, crocodiles and snakes sometimes?

Scary, is it.

Well, from start, in 2013, she graced the silver screen as an anchor on the ZBCTV “Good Morning Zimbabwe” show, proving her mettle as a young media personality.

In 2014, she started presenting the main news bulletin and three years later she earned the term, “newsbae”.

She is an entrepreneur, social media influencer and events manager.

Rumbidzai “Rumbi” Takawira with her beautiful face and sweet voice, she is the founder member of the popular consultancy company “MedEsther Brands” and a lover of wild animals.

Ever since she left television scene, Rumbi has been always spending time in the bundu. Her works with nature have landed her a top post at the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) as the regional conservation ambassador covering Africa.

The Herald on Saturday Lifestyle caught up with her to understand what her post entails, its benefits and how it can develop the Zimbabwean wildlife.

Asked how she landed the post, Rumbi said it was about determination and courage as a young lady.

“Sheer hard work, a great team, consistency and determination, even though the toughest of times,” she said.

“I have always been an adventurous person growing up and had an interest in exploring my surroundings. When I became a journalist, it gave me an opportunity to really explore and tell stories, traveling and interacting with different sectors, cultures and environments.”

The 32- year-old said that she started paying attention to the conservation sector in 2018 when she was made one of Zimbabwe’s anti-poaching ambassadors for WILDAID.

“This opened me up to so many opportunities within the conservation sector. I have been advocating for the protection of our biodiversity since then and working with communities in wildlife areas. I saw the need to also work towards striking a balance to deal with issues of conflict between humans and wildlife. If you look at my social media dating back to 2018, you will see just a fraction of the work I have been doing in conservation. Because I have been very vocal and passionate about this cause, the opportunity with IFAW arose as they needed someone passionate to carry the message of sustainable conservation and the work they have done in Southern Africa, and voilà, there I was.”

Rumbi said the post means a lot to the country as it brings wildlife issues to the fron.“In observing the past years, human and wildlife conflict has been on the rise. This indicates the need for measures that are sustainable. IFAW as an organisation works with Government and communities to help alleviate such issues and one of the measures is securing and preserving wildlife corridors for wildlife to roam. My role is to conscientise the Zimbabwean populace on the importance of doing so. Allowing policy makers to consider the need to preserve and expand such spaces is also important as both benefit from this. I will use my platforms both traditional and digital to communicate this cause.

“Zimbabwe has a beautiful conservation story with abundant flora and fauna. My appointment will allow me to highlight the country’s successful conservation stories.”

She added that this will allow people to also appreciate positive partnerships between IFAW and the Zimbabwean Government through the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) which are necessary as conservation is quite an expensive undertaking.

She highlighted that Zimbabwe’s benefit includes showcasing success stories in conservation, highlighting gains made in conservation under new dispensation (for example the reintroduction of rhinos into the country’s second largest national park), marketing  Zimbabwe as a tourism destination, encouraging domestic tourism, providing content on conservation, travel and tourism for the national broadcaster among others.

The bubbly former presenter said her new career was amazing as it was full of adventure.

“It is amazing! Doing something you are passionate about and making a difference through it is so fulfilling. I always strive to make a difference wherever I go, and discovering a career that does just that is a gift from God.

“I also don’t have to be in the office much, so this definitely feeds into my adventurous nature.  I couldn’t ask for anything better,” she said.

However, her fans on social media have been querying whether she has ditched the camera or she is going to return on screen.

“The camera will forever be my friend. I am definitely not ditching the television side of things. Through the work I have done with WILDAID, which is a communications based conservation organisation. We have been creating documentaries and public service announcements to spread the message of conserving flora and fauna,” said Rumbi.