BULAWAYO – A group of women who have raised their children without partners have formed an organisation to empower themselves and contribute to the country’s economic development. The organisation, called Single Mothers for Economic Development (ED), launched its Bulawayo branch on Saturday and received support from Zanu-PF provincial chairperson Jabulani Sibanda.
Sibanda praised the women for their courage and resilience and urged them to vote for President Emmerson Mnangagwa and Zanu-PF in the upcoming elections. He said the ruling party was committed to uplifting the lives of all Zimbabweans through various projects that aligned with the vision of becoming an upper middle-income economy by 2030.
He also condemned some of the practices that were prevalent in some Western countries, such as same sex marriages, and applauded Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni for standing up against international pressure to repeal an anti-gay law.
The national chairlady of Single Mothers4ED, Martha Munondo-Tafirenyika, said the organisation was implementing a number of projects for single mothers across the country in sectors such as agriculture, mining and SMEs. She said some of the projects included detergent making, uniform sewing and baking, while others had benefited from the First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa’s Agric4She initiative.
She said most of the single mothers were first-time voters and they were fully behind President Mnangagwa and Zanu-PF MPs and councillors. The national secretary for administration for the organisation, Julia Siwetshe, said single women had often been sidelined and stigmatised in society, but they had decided to embrace President Mnangagwa’s Vision 2030 and his mantra of leaving no one and no place behind.
