Author: TSA Press

In
the
sun-scorched
lands
bordering
Zimbabwe’s
largest
wildlife
sanctuary,
Takesure
Moyo
pedals
through
his
village
each
morning
on
a
mission
to
help
his
community
coexist
with
the
elephants
and
predators
that
roam
nearby.

The
49-year-old
is
among
several
locals
trained
as
community
monitors
under
an
initiative
by
the
International
Fund
for
Animal
Welfare
(IFAW)
and
Zimbabwe’s
National
Parks
and
Wildlife
Authority
(Zimparks).

Equipped
with
a
mobile
phone,
he
uses
an
app
to
log
sightings,
spoor
and
incidents
—
data
that
enables
authorities
to
respond
swiftly
and
issue
alerts
to
prevent
potential
confrontation
with
dangerous
animals,
including
ones
straying
from
the
nearby
Hwange
National
Park.

“We
have
always
lived
with
wild
animals
around
us,
but
our
responses
to
human-wildlife
conflict
were
rather
individual
and
uncoordinated,”
Moyo,
speaking
in
vernacular
Ndebele,
told
AFP.

“The
initiative
has
helped
the
community
become
more
knowledgeable
about
animal
behaviour
and
ultimately
minimise
conflict.”

Wild
animals
have
killed
around
300
people
in
Zimbabwe
over
the
past
five
years,
according
to
Zimparks,
with
crops
and
livestock
also
suffering
heavy
losses.
Nearly
70
percent
of
reported
incidents
occur
in
communities
bordering
national
parks
such
as
Hwange,
it
says.

A
few
years
ago,
Moyo
lost
six
cattle
to
lions.
It
prompted
him
to
become
involved
in
the
project
to
protect
his
community.

Equipped
with
a
bicycle
provided
by
IFAW,
he
patrols
the
area
around
his
village
daily,
sending
updates
to
Zimparks
with
a
focus
on
“problem
animals”
like
elephants
and
lions.

His
input
complements
data
received
by
satellite
from
GPS
collars
fitted
to
16
elephants
in
the
area,
both
feeding
a
mobile
application
called
EarthRanger
that
allows
real-time
monitoring
and
rapid
response.

–
Swift
reaction
–

Zimbabwe
is
home
to
nearly
100,000
elephants,
the
world’s
second-largest
population
of
savannah
elephants
after
neighbouring
Botswana,
according
to
a
2022
aerial
survey
conducted
under
the
Kavango
Zambezi
Transfrontier
Conservation
Area.

“During
the
dry
season,
elephants
sometimes
come
for
water
at
the
nearby
dam,
which
is
the
source
of
water
for
our
communal
gardens,”
Moyo
said.
“And
during
the
cropping
season,
they
can
come
to
eat
our
crops.”

The
EarthRanger
app
—
used
in
80
countries,
according
to
its
developers
—
is
“highly
effective,”
Zimparks
acting
public
relations
manager,
Tamirirashe
Mudzingwa,
told
AFP.

As
a
live
early
warning
system,
it
gives
communities
time
to
protect
themselves,
their
livestock
and
property
from
approaching
wildlife,
he
said.

A
separate
project
collects
data
from
collars
fitted
to
some
elephants
that
have
been
rescued,
rehabilitated
and
reintroduced
to
free-roaming
herds
by
the
Wild
Is
Life
organisation.

At
a
monitoring
centre,
technical
officer
Simbarashe
Mupanhwa
pointed
to
multi-coloured
lines
on
his
computer
screen
that
tracked
the
movements
of
Samson,
a
seven-year-old
elephant
back
in
the
bush
after
being
saved
when
he
was
abandoned
at
birth.

“Other
than
helping
monitor
the
elephants’
movements,
the
application
is
also
able
to
track
the
organisation’s
rangers
and
vehicles,
helping
ensure
that
if
there
are
any
incidents
of
poaching,
reaction
is
as
swift
as
possible,”
Mupanhwa
told
AFP.

–
Growing
elephant
population
–

The
satellite
telemetry
“offers
critical
spatial
insights
into
habitat
use,
movement
patterns,
and
the
identification
of
frequently
utilised
areas,
including
ecological
corridors
and
dispersal
zones,”
said
Phillip
Kuvawoga,
IFAW’s
conservation
senior
director.

Community-based
conservation
has
become
a
common
ground
for
IFAW
and
Zimparks,
which
have
different
philosophies
over
Zimbabwe’s
ballooning
elephant
population.

The
government
argues
the
country
cannot
sustain
so
many
of
the
animals
and
has
lobbied
for
the
lifting
of
a
global
ban
on
the
trade
in
tusks,
saying
its
ivory
stockpile
is
worth
millions
of
dollars
that
could
be
used
to
bolster
ranger
welfare
and
conservation.

Zimparks,
a
government
agency,
supports
“consumptive
tourism”
such
as
safari
hunting,
including
of
elephants,
while
IFAW
promotes
photographic
safaris.

“The
collaboration
embodies
a
pragmatic
agreement:
conservation
efforts
must
be
inclusive,
science-based,
and
adaptable,”
said
Alleta
Nyahuye,
country
director
of
IFAW,
which
flags
as
its
mission
the
ideal
of
“helping
animals
and
people
to
thrive
together”.

In
villages
like
Moyo’s,
the
impact
is
tangible.

“It’s
not
just
about
protecting
animals,”
Moyo
said.
“It’s
about
protecting
our
way
of
life,
too.”
AFP

Source:


Tech
tracking
to
tackle
human-wildlife
conflict
in
Zimbabwe
–

Technology
Khabar

On
Sunday,
7
December,
the
ZANU
PF
Manicaland
Provincial
Coordination
Committee
(PCC)
resolved
to
co-opt
Tungwarara
to
fill
a
vacant
Central
Committee
seat.
The
vacancy
arose
after
Chipinge’s
Dorothy
Mabika
was
elected
provincial
Women’s
League
chairperson.

However,
on
11
December
2025,
ZANU
PF
National
Political
Commissar
Munyaradzi
Machacha
wrote
to
provincial
chair
Tawanda
Mukodza
informing
him
that
Tungwarara’s
co-option
had
been
nullified.

Machacha
said
the
move
went
against
the
Legal
Affairs
Department
Circular
of
30
June
2025,
which
outlines
the
mandatory
procedures
for
co-opting
members
into
the
Central
Committee.

He
also
warned
aspiring
candidates
against
giving
out
money,
goods
or
services
in
pursuit
of
the
position,
stressing
that
such
actions
amount
to
vote
buying
and
would
lead
to
automatic
disqualification.

In
a
statement
issued
on
Friday,
12
December,
Mutsvangwa
said
the
Politburo
respects
Manicaland
Province’s
decision
and
will
meet
to
consider
the
matter
before
making
a
final
determination.
Said
Mutsvangwa:

“There
is
an
appearance
of
needless
confusion
concerning
the
nominations
for
the
Central
Committee
replacement
in
Manicaland
Province.

“The
correct
position
is
that
the
party
takes
serious
respect
for
the
deliberations
of
the
provincial
leadership
of
the
province.

“It
is
an
important
organ
of
the
party,
particularly
for
Manicaland,
which
is
the
second
largest
population
after
Harare.

“So
it’s
natural
that
whatever
they
apply
themselves
to
is
taken
seriously
by
the
party.

“The
appearance
of
confusion
will
be
addressed
in
the
usual
manner,
as
was
done
in
the
case
of
Harare
Province,
and
it
will
be
done
at
the
Politburo
level.

“So
for
anybody
who
has
got
anxieties
about
what
is
going
on,
hold
your
gun.
The
Politburo
will
meet
and
the
matter
will
be
considered
and
a
due
finality
will
be
delivered
on
the
matter
of
the
Central
Committee
nomination
for
Manicaland.”

Under
Statutory
Instrument
215
of
2025,
foreigners
are
barred
from
operating
in
sectors
such
as
artisanal
mining,
bakeries,
advertising
agencies,
salons,
employment
agencies,
and
the
local
arts
and
crafts
industry.

In
certain
sectors,
including
retail,
wholesale,
trucking,
grain
milling,
and
shipping,
foreign
participation
is
permitted
only
for
large
investors.

For
instance,
in
retail
and
wholesale,
a
foreign
investor
must
commit
at
least
US$20
million
and
employ
200
people.

In
the
haulage
industry,
the
minimum
investment
is
US$10
million
with
100
employees.

In
grain
milling,
a
foreign
investor
must
employ
at
least
50
people
and
invest
US$25
million.

In
shipping
and
forwarding,
the
threshold
is
US$1
million
and
20
employees.

The
transport,
estate
agency,
and
clearing
and
customs
sectors
remain
exclusively
for
Zimbabweans,
except
for
international
brands.

Existing
foreign-run
businesses
in
the
reserved
sectors
have
three
years
to
sell
75%
of
their
shares
to
Zimbabwean
citizens,
divesting
25%
each
year.

Foreign
control
in
other
parts
of
the
economy,
including
large-scale
mining,
banking,
and
other
industries,
will
not
be
affected.

Sectors
exclusively
reserved
for
Zimbabweans
include
barber
shops,
hairdressing
and
beauty
salons,
employment
agencies,
valet
services,
bakeries,
tobacco
grading
and
packaging,
advertising
agencies,
local
arts
and
crafts
marketing
and
distribution,
artisanal
mining,
borehole
drilling,
and
pharmaceutical
retail.

HARARE
–
Zanu
PF
has
blocked
an
attempt
by
its
Manicaland
provincial
leadership
to
co-opt
President
Emmerson
Mnangagwa’s
adviser
Paul
Tungwarara
into
the
party’s
central
committee,
ruling
that
the
move
violated
party
procedures
and
warning
against
creeping
vote
buying.

The
intervention
came
in
a
December
11
letter
from
National
Political
Commissar
Munyaradzi
Machacha
to
provincial
chairman
Tawanda
Mukodza,
in
which
he
nullified
Tungwarara’s
elevation
by
the
Manicaland
Provincial
Coordinating
Committee
(PCC)
during
its
December
7
meeting.

Machacha
said
the
PCC
had
disregarded
guidelines
issued
by
the
party’s
legal
affairs
department,
which
require
that
any
replacement
for
a
vacant
central
committee
post
must
come
from
the
same
administrative
district
as
the
departing
member.

Tungwarara
had
been
selected
to
fill
a
vacancy
left
by
Dorothy
Mabika,
who
hailed
from
Chipinge.

“The
said
co-option
has
been
nullified
with
immediate
effect,”
Machacha
wrote,
stressing
that
the
correct
nominee
“must
originate
from
Chipinge
administrative
district”
in
line
with
Zanu
PF’s
proportional
representation
rules
across
districts.

He
also
issued
a
pointed
warning
against
any
acts
of
inducement,
saying
“issuance
of
money,
goods
or
services”
by
aspirants
would
be
treated
as
vote
buying
and
lead
to
automatic
disqualification.

Tungwarara,
who
has
amassed
significant
wealth
through
opaque
state
contracts,
was
accused
by
rivals
of
distributing
cash
and
buying
food
for
PCC
delegates
who
backed
his
attempted
co-option.

Manicaland
has
been
instructed
to
restart
the
process,
this
time
adhering
strictly
to
the
legal
affairs
department
circular.

Once
a
peripheral
political
figure,
Tungwarara
has
rapidly
risen
within
Zanu
PF
circles
through
a
series
of
high-profile
schemes
run
in
the
name
of
Mnangagwa
—
including
the
Presidential
Borehole
Scheme,
the
Presidential
Stands
for
Veterans
of
the
Liberation
Struggle
Programme,
the
Presidential
War
Veterans
Fund
and
the
Presidential
Solar
Programme.

His
nationwide
cash
giveaways
and
lavish
sponsorship
of
party
activities
have
unsettled
some
within
Zanu
PF,
who
privately
warn
that
money
is
increasingly
tilting
internal
power
dynamics.

With
some
touting
him
as
a
future
presidential
candidate,
Tungwarara
appears
in
a
hurry
to
scale
up
Zanu
PF’s
political
ladder,
and
a
place
in
the
300-member
central
committee
is
a
key
step.

The
debate,
organised
by
the
Centre
for
Innovation
and
Technology
(CITE)
in
collaboration
with
the
Bulawayo
Progressive
Residents
Association
(BPRA),
Election
Resource
Centre
(ERC)
and
the
Nkulumane
Constituency
Development
Committee,
saw
some
residents
pressing
candidates
on
constitutional
accountability.

The
participants
were
eager
to
question
candidates
contesting
the
December
20
by-election
and
tension
peaked
when
an
attendee
directly
challenged
the
Zanu
PF
candidate
on
how
he
would
defend
the
constitution
while
his
party
advocated
for
extending
the
presidency
to
2030
and
potentially
postponing
the
2028
elections.

“Zanu
PF
is
pushing
for
the
2030
agenda
so
that
it
continues
in
power
yet
the
constitution
says
a
term
for
Parliament
and
office
bearers
should
be
for
five
years
but
Zanu
PF
wants
its
rule
to
go
on.
You
are
oppressing
us.
I
am
a
woman,
a
mother
and
want
to
be
heard.
Please
respect
and
follow
the
constitution,”
she
said,
lifting
her
copy
of
the
constitution.

“We
don’t
want
the
2030
agenda,
we
want
elections
in
2028.
This
is
my
bible.
It
is
my
constitution.
I
am
actually
shaking
with
anger
and
feeling
hurt.
I
am
a
human
right
defender;
let
me
defend
the
constitution.”

In
response,
Murechu
framed
the
controversial
push
as
an
internal
party
resolution
subject
to
democratic
parliamentary
processes.

“Parties
come
up
with
resolutions,
even
the
opposition
has
its
own
resolutions
and
these
are
put
to
test,”
Murechu
stated.

“If
the
party
agrees
with
the
resolutions,
they
will
go
to
Parliament.
The
parliament
has
opposition
MPs,
if
that
issue
is
not
liked
there
it
will
hit
a
bump.”

He
elaborated
on
a
vision
of
majority
rule,
dismissing
the
notion
that
the
resolution
was
predetermined
to
succeed.

“If
MPs
do
not
agree
they
will
vote
and
zero
sum
winner
takes
all.
That
is
democracy.
It
is
a
Zanu
PF
resolution,
it
will
go
to
the
government
who
takes
it
to
Parliament
and
MPs
will
vote.
If
they
do
not
agree,
they
will
vote.
The
majority
vote
then
sees
the
light
of
the
day,”
Murechu
said.

Murechu
acknowledged
internal
dissent
within
Zanu
PF
itself,
using
a
simplistic
analogy
to
explain
his
view
of
democratic
decision-making.

“Even
within
our
party,
some
don’t
agree,
that
is
democracy
but
what
is
agreed
by
many
sees
the
light
of
the
day.
MPs
will
sit
and
vote
even
with
projects
and
programmes
but
the
majority
decides.
When
the
majority
want
a
borehole
and
others
want
a
chicken
fowl,
those
who
want
a
borehole
win,”
he
said.

He
also
pointed
to
existing
legal
challenges
as
evidence
of
a
functioning
system,
alluding
to
a
constitutional
court
petition
submitted
by
independent
candidate
Mbuso
Fuzwayo
to
stop
the
term
extension.

“There
are
legal
processes,
some
are
already
up,”
he
noted.

The
exchange
highlighted
the
central
political
conflict
in
Zimbabwe
as
the
ruling
party
is
trying
to
find
ways
to
amend
constitutional
term
limits.

His
remarks,
however,
drew
murmurs
from
the
crowd,
with
several
attendees
questioning
whether
a
Zanu
PF-controlled
Parliament
would
genuinely
reject
a
resolution
pushed
by
the
party
leadership.

Participants
at
the
debate
could
be
heard
saying
that
Murechu’s
defence
rested
entirely
on
the
procedural
aspect
of
the
proposed
change,
as
he
argued
that
a
parliamentary
vote
legitimises
the
outcome
while
sidestepping
the
substantive
critique
of
undermining
the
foundational
five-year
term
limit
enshrined
in
Zimbabwe’s
national
constitution.

Cllr
Mutangi’s
co-accused,
Janet
Zhou,
will
perform
450
hours
of
community
service
at
Cowdray
Park
police
station
for
the
same
charges.

Bulawayo
Provincial
Magistrate,
Richard
Ramaboea,
sentenced
the
pair
to
a
total
of
40
months
in
prison,
and
suspended
two
months
from
each
count
on
condition
that
they
restitute
all
the
victims
in
full
by
February
27.
The
remaining
14
months
were
commuted
to
community
service
for
each
of
them.

Mutangi
and
Zhou
were
convicted
on
13
counts
of
fraud
last
week,
after
they
swindled
local
vendors
of
money
by
falsely
promising
them
vending
bays.
The
pair,
who
had
denied
the
charges,
was
found
guilty
by
the
court.

Magistrate
Ramaboea
ruled
that
the
vendors
had
only
handed
over
their
money
because
they
were
assured
of
legal
vending
bays
that
would
allow
them
to
trade
without
running
from
municipal
police,
but
Mutangi
and
Zhou
instead
defrauded
them.

He
said
receipt
books
produced
in
court
and
the
constitution
of
their
purported
Bulawayo
Achievers
Association
were
part
of
a
ploy
to
evade
the
charges.

In
mitigation,
their
lawyer,
Constance
Mathaba
of
Makiye
and
Partners,  submitted
that
Mutangi
was
a
first-time
offender
who
had
learnt
from
the
experience
and
was
prepared
to
compensate
the
complainants.
She
said
the
extensive
media
coverage
of
the
case
had
already
caused
him
significant
embarrassment
and
that
he
would
not
want
to
repeat
such
conduct.

“The
accused
has
never
broken
the
law
until
now.
He
is
also
willing
to
restitute
the
complainants
their
money.
For
a
person
of
his
standing,
he
has
learnt
his
lesson,”
she
said,
adding
that
the
public
scrutiny
surrounding
the
case
had
been
punitive
in
itself.

The
exchanges
emerged
during
a
Meet
Your
Candidates
debate
community
meeting
in
Nkulumane
where
aspiring
legislators
were
asked
to
say
out
what
they
had
done
and
what
they
could
realistically
do
for
Nkulumane.

The
debate
was
held
Wednesdy
at
Nkulumane
Hall
and
organised
by
the
Centre
for
Innovation
and
Technology
(CITE)
in
collaboration
with
the
Bulawayo
Progressive
Residents
Association
(BPRA),
Election
Resource
Centre
(ERC)
and
the
Nkulumane
Constituency
Development
Committee.

Zanu
PF’s
candidate,
Freedom
Murechu,
championed
a
model
of
development-through-access
and
leveraging
connection
to
the
ruling
party
to
extract
resources
while
the
independent
candidates
such
as
Rodney
Jele
advocated
for
a
model
of
devolved
governance,
where
development
is
planned
and
executed
locally,
free
from
partisan
manipulation
from
Harare.

The
Zanu
PF
candidate
argued
opposition-led
urban
councils
had
failed
Bulawayo
and
were
responsible
for
the
city’s
deterioration
over
the
past
two
decades.

He
said
aligning
Nkulumane
with
the
ruling
Zanu
PF
would
facilitate
development
because
the
national
government,
including
President
Emmerson
Mnangagwa,
is
controlled
by
Zanu
PF.

“Zanu
is
in
opposition
in
Bulawayo
province.
The
opposition
has
been
in
power
for
two
decades
now.
The
city
was
run
by
Zanu
before
the
opposition
took
over.
In
2000
when
the
opposition
came
over
that’s
when
we
started
seeing
the
city
deteriorating,”
he
said.

Murechu
claimed
Zanu
PF
had
long-term
development
plans
that
were
discarded
after
the
opposition
took
control
of
the
city’s
governance.

“Zanu
council
had
a
vision
of
growing
the
population
and
said
short-term
let’s
drill
boreholes,
long-term,
do
Gwayi-Shangani,
but
Zanu
was
voted
out,”
he
said,
noting
the
government
has
been
accused
of
neglect
when
water
shortages
worsened.

Murechu
also
questioned
the
need
to
build
new
dams,
saying
residents
will
shoulder
that
burden
after
Mbuso
Fuzwayo,
one
of
the
independent
candidates,
had
proposed
that.

The
Zanu
PF
hopeful
cited
developments
in
Pelandaba–Tshabalala
and
Cowdray
Park,
attributing
them
to
by-elections
that
returned
the
constituencies
to
Zanu
PF.

“We
took
control
in
Pelandaba–Tshabalala
and
Cowdray
Park
after
by-elections
and
a
lot
is
happening
now
there,
but
the
development
is
seen
as
a
drop
in
the
ocean
because
our
cities
and
towns
have
deteriorated
a
lot.
Look
at
what
Mthuli
Ncube
(finance
minister
who
ran
for
the
seat
but
was
beaten
in
the
2023
election)
did
in
Cowdray
Park,
look
at
the
roads,
he
has
continued.”

Murechu
said
he
had
personally
financed
some
community
initiatives.

“I
have
drilled
a
borehole
using
my
own
money
after
speaking
to
the
local
councillor
Mmeli
Dube
regardless
of
the
fact
that
I
am
a
Zanu
member.
We 
do
a
lot
but
people
don’t
notice.
You
only
see
it
during
a
campaign
but
the
challenge
is
you
people
don’t
rise
up.
You
say
‘yizinto
zeZanu
asizingeni’ but
that’s
money
to
develop
our
communities.”

He
added
that
his
close
ties
to
the
government
would
provide
steady
support
for
Nkulumane.

“I
have
good
relations
with
the
government
of
the
day.
Now
we
have
fixed
four
transformers
and
over
7
000
food
hampers
have
arrived.
The
US$100,000
revolving
fund
is
here
but
I
was
already
capacitating
others
with
my
own
money,”
Murechu
said.

Positioning
himself
as
the
only
candidate
who
can
work
seamlessly
with
the
national
administration,
he
said:
“I
am
clearly
someone
who
can
work
with
the
current
government,
already
Zanu
is
in
the
government
and
the
president
is
a
Zanu
candidate.
Vote
for
someone
who
can
work
with
the
Zanu
government
and
the
Zanu
leader,”
said
the
candidate

However
Murechu’s
assertions
were
swiftly
challenged.

Former
councillor,
Jele,
now
an
independent
candidate,
dismissed
the
idea
that
aligning
with
the
ruling
party
guarantees
development.

He
argued
the
deterioration
of
Bulawayo
began
when
the
central
government
stripped
councils
of
autonomy.

“I
don’t
have
money
to
bring
development.
You
would
be
thieving
if
you
do
that
from
your
own
pocket
but
as
a
public
official
you
work
with
the
state
that
releases
funds.
The
government
centralised
everything
when
the
opposition
took
over
power.
The
local
authority
is
as
poor
as
its
residents,”
Jele
said.

“The
government
removed
local
power
and
centralised
everything.
That’s
when
the
local
authority
failed
to
deliver.
To
an
extent
that
if
you
want
to
hire
personnel,
you
must
go
to
Harare.
That’s
why
we
are
pushing
devolution.”

Another
independent
candidate,
Mbuso
Fuzwayo,
said
development
in
Nkulumane
should
not
be
reduced
to
political
allegiance
or
personal
wealth.

“I
cannot
develop
Nkulumane
on
my
own.
Development
doesn’t
need
me
alone
as
Fuzwayo
but
everyone.
All
of
us
must
set
our
priorities
well,
but
our
priorities
are
misplaced,
let’s
meet
together
halfway.”

MDC–T
candidate,
Ethel
Sibanda,
highlighted
her
past
work
with
community
organisations
focusing
on
children’s
welfare.

“I
worked
with
NGOs
which
were
paying
fees
for
children.
Some
who
are
here
can
testify 
but
when
the
government
made
the
law
tough
for
NGOs,
we
ended
this
last
year.
I
have
worked
with
children,
improving
relations
with
parents
so
they
can
become
good
models,”
she
said.