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By Marlvin Ngiza
Youths have been challenged to engage in safe and lawful informal means of earning a living and grab any chance available to them as a way of countering unemployment in the midst of the obtaining economic crisis.
This was said by one of the youths, Garikai Muteiwa who has recently successfully set up a horticultural project in Zabe Ward 3 of Chikomba Central.
Garikai Muteiwa grows onions and cabbages on a rotational basis on a 1-hectare piece of land.
In an interview with Spiked Online Media, Muteiwa said that he realised that agricultural outputs constitute a greater part of everyday meals hence prompting him into that project.
“I realised that people fork out money every day to buy horticultural products and that pushed me into horticulture. I grow onions and cabbages on my 1-hectare piece of land on our farm.
“I just want to say to all youths in Zimbabwe, let us utilize all the opportunities we have to get a living. To those with access to land, let us utilize it. Farming is a business on its own. Let us not just cry about economic hardships and the lack of employment but instead come up with better and safe strategies to counter the adverse effects of unemployment,” said Muteiwa.
He expressed pleasure in his project saying that so far, the horticultural earnings have helped him in setting up a goat-keeping project, buying a planter to use in his operations, and sustaining him on his daily survival.
“Horticulture is paying off. So far, I managed to buy a planter and have set up a goat project. That’s a new project born out of horticulture. It also provides me with money to cater to my basic needs,” added Muteiwa.
Meanwhile, Muteiwa highlighted that pests and lack of resources such as good storage facilities has seen him sometimes losing a part of his harvest hence the need for youth representatives to be supportive by assisting them in accessing financial assistance from relevant institutions.
“However, sometimes I lose a portion of my harvest during the rainy season. My storage shed is small so some of my onions rot due to rains. I am also faced with pests such as worms that eat my cabbages but I am trying my best,” said Muteiwa.
The high unemployment rate in the country has seen a number of youths engaging in illicit conduct such as robbery, thuggery, and drug abuse.
The government of Zimbabwe has established a number of technical and vocational centres across the country as a way of equipping youths with technical skills.