MAIN PICTURE: Tongogara refugees are benefitting from a 25ha irrigation scheme which currently has sugar beans. INSERTS: Part of the poultry project (left), the grocery shop that was opened by members of the poultry project (centre) and Mr Simon Longo showing his pigs at the piggery project (right).
APPROXIMATELY 29km from Tanganda Halt in Chipinge going towards Chiredzi along the Tanganda-Ngundu Highway is Nyautsa Bridge at an area called Mabhonzo. Turning right on an earth road, one sees an old sign post inscribed “Tongogara Refugee Camp.”
Proceeding with the earth road for a further 14km westwards towards Save River, one would be greeted by acacia bushes. Here and there, elephant droppings become visible. The jumbos that frequent the area are those that would have escaped from Save Valley Conservancy which is adjacent to the area but on the other side of Save River.
At the 18km peg, a settlement becomes visible. Kids can be seen playing, chasing one another and shouting in Swahili language. This is none other than Tongogara Refugee Camp itself.
Tongogara Refugee Camp has been operational since the early 1980s when political instability in our eastern neighbour, Mozambique, caused people to flee to that country for safety. Zimbabwe hosted the Mozambique nationals at this camp and another one in Chiredzi named Chambuta Refugee Camp.
Today, Chambuta Refugee Camp has been transformed into a vocational centre. Only Tongogara still plays its original role, but no longer hosts Mozambique refugees alone.
Tongogara is now hosting refugees and asylum seekers from all over Africa and beyond. Following the political turmoil that rocked the Great Lakes region of Africa, the camp had an influx of refugees from Rwanda, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Somalia, Ethiopia, Ivory Coast, Egypt, Eritrea, Mali, Libya, Sudan Kenya, Tanzania, Ghana and South Africa.
As of September 2015, Zimbabwe officially hosted 10 089 asylum seekers, refugees and their dependants. DRC constitute 80 percent of the refugees while Rwanda 9 percent, Burundi 8 percent and the remaining 3 percent is made up of the other nationals.
United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) has been overseeing the welfare of those in refugee camps. Refugees in Zimbabwe used to receive food handouts in form of mealie-meal, relish, cooking oil and other supplements per each person residing in the camp.
According to the Tongogara Refugee Camp’s administrator, Mr Misheck Zengeya, UNHCR is burdened worldwide. This has led to support organisations resolving to offer cash instead of food handouts. Each head is now receiving $11 per month.
Little as it is, the $11 allocation leaves one wondering what the future of the refugees is. Can the refugees be self-reliant?
Zimbabwe is focusing much on Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) in most of its developments projects being undertaken in the country. Does that mean that the concept of PPPs can be implemented for refugees?
A tripartite PPP is already in place for Tongogara Refugee Camp. The Department of Social Welfare, which administers the camp, as the public partner has incorporated two private partners being UNHCR and GOAL Zimbabwe.
GOAL Zimbabwe is an international humanitarian agency dedicated to alleviating the suffering of the poorest of the poor in the developing world. GOAL started operating in Zimbabwe in 2002 and its programmes have evolved from food assistance to development oriented projects. Since April 2015, the PPP has been promoting sustainable livelihoods initiatives in the camp that seek to promote self-reliance.
PICTURE: Chipinge District Administrator (centre) Mr Edgars Seenza touring the pig project
Over the past year, over 1 440 refugees have benefited from the livelihoods interventions working on a 25ha irrigation scheme. Currently, the scheme is boosting of sugar beans for home consumption. According to the chairman of the irrigation scheme, Mr Abedi Amisi, refugees from the Great Lakes region don’t eat beans grain only but they also eat beans leaves as relish.
Small livestock (poultry and piggery) and promoting micro-gardens have been considered in the PPP. A poultry project with 50 members is operational. According to the chairman of the project Mr Simon Longo, the project has 380 layers and 400 broilers, of which 200 are ready for sale. Proceeds from the poultry project have enabled them to establish a grocery shop which shall diverse to butchery soon in order to increase the members’ income.
Another exciting project is that of piggery. It has 73 members and has 470 pigs. The project has stocked its pigs from those readily available in the camp. Tongogara had a pig population of 2 300 roaming in the camp. Mrs Irene Chikomba of International Livestock Institute admitted that the camp piggery is meeting expected health standards.
On 8 June 2016, the stakeholders held a Livestock Day in order to showcase and bring awareness to the Chipinge community of the livelihoods activities.
In a speech, the District Administrator for Chipinge Mr Edgars Seenza said: “Today marks an important day for the Chipinge community and the Tongogara Refugee Camp refugees as it affords the community an opportunity to have an appreciation of the livelihood activities being promoted at the camp and the potential supply of poultry eggs and pigs to abattoirs, butcheries and supermarkets. We should ensure that produce from the refugees has a market and that the refuges are able to earn some income. This is a key factor towards building self-reliance and sustainability.”
Truly, refugees can be self-reliant.