Through the use of a digital whiteboard and Skype, the Shona Ndebele Tutor platform provides online tutoring to any learner in any part of the world. The administrators of the platform pair a teacher of the specific language with a learner who will have signed up for a minimum of a single 1 hour lesson which costs £10 or a US dollar equivalent.

Articles appeared first on Techzim;
Shona-Ndebele Tutor offers avenue for preserving & promoting local languages

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Zimbabwe improves World Bank Doing Business rankings
Green Fuel ropes in JOC to supress villagers
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Thank you and good-bye
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Govt moves on economic empowerment strategy
City of Kings’ poor find little for their comfort
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Analysis: Looking beyond Mugabe
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Zim diplomats face eviction
MDC-T youths dare Mugabe
Thank you and good-bye
Indian killer begs to be deported to Zim

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via Zim white farmers start anew in Chimoio – New Zimbabwe 28/10/2015

CHIMOIO: A middle-aged white man wearing a khaki shirt and shorts stands on a flat, fertile piece of land surrounded by a group of young black men in bright orange uniforms.

Bill Creswell, 58, owns a farm in the agricultural town of Chimoio in Mozambique’s Manica province. The young men in uniform are his employees. Altogether about 45 of them are working the fields.

Creswell is one of more than 50 white farmers who moved to Chimoio from across the border in Zimbabwe following its controversial land reform programme.

Since early 2000, the move by the government of President Robert Mugabe has driven thousands of white farmers off their lands.

“This is home. Zimbabwe is a chapter in my life that is closed,” Creswell told Al Jazeera, inspecting new tomato seedlings while adjusting his sunglasses to block the rays of tropical sunshine.

Creswell said he left Zimbabwe more than 10 years ago, as the world he and his family knew crumbled around him.

“I felt unsafe. I left with nothing. No valuables, just a bag containing my clothes. Until that point, I only knew Zimbabwe.”

In 2000, violent land takeovers started forcing out Zimbabwe’s more than 3,000 remaining white farmers. Creswell left and never looked back.

Land ownership was one of the major issues during Zimbabwe’s brutal struggle against white British minority rule. Zimbabwe gained independence in 1980, and Mugabe was elected leader.

Because of the race-based preferential treatment enforced by the repressive colonial system, white commercial farmers owned an estimated 70 percent of the fertile land in the country, with blacks pushed out of their ancestral areas onto unproductive land without compensation.

At independence, about 6,000 white farmers owned almost two-thirds of the country’s arable land.

Growing impatient at unequal land distribution and the slow progress of redistribution of arable land since independence, impoverished peasants and veterans of Zimbabwe’s colonial struggle took matters into their own hands starting in 2000 – and reclaimed land by force.

Many white farmers moved to the United Kingdom, from where their ancestors had come. Others headed for Australia and New Zealand.

But many remained on the continent. Dozens moved to Zambia, South Africa, and Nigeria. Others chose to stay closer to Zimbabwe. More than 200 crossed the border into Mozambique, the former Portuguese colony of more than 25 million people.

Mozambique emerged from a bloody civil war in 1992, which had damaged the country’s commercial farming sector.

In light of the developments in Zimbabwe, Mozambique saw an opportunity and welcomed the white farmers with cheap, long-term land leases.

Starting from scratch

In Chimoio, located about 95km from the border with Zimbabwe, more than 50 Zimbabwean commercial farmers were attracted not just by the offer of safety and favourable land leases, but also by cheap loans from multinational tobacco companies.

They started from scratch, clearing bush before planting.

The language barrier between the farm owners and Mozambicans was a big problem at first, and the white farmers struggled to find employees who knew about their methods of farming.

They also had to find new markets for their produce: In Zimbabwe, they had contracts with local supermarkets and multinational companies, but they had to start anew in Mozambique. It was painstaking work, but it is finally paying off, Creswell said.

“We started initially very small and we [have] grown. We now grow 12 hectares of horticulture. It doesn’t sound much, but it terms of turnover it is quiet big,” Creswell told Al Jazeera.

More than 140km north of Chimoio is Vanduzi, another town favoured by white Zimbabwean farmers who escaped Mugabe’s land redistribution programme. Vanduzi, which is also near Zimbabwe, is nestled in the shadows of mountains, and has a small river that flows year-round.

Kevin Gifford moved to Vanduzi 13 years ago after his farm was seized. He is the third generation in his family to have been born in Zimbabwe. On his new 450-hectare farm, he grows tobacco and keeps 150 head of cattle and 160 sheep.

He is happy about how he has been received in Mozambique, but is still bitter about events back home.

“I do feel welcome in Mozambique. I think Mozambique has been very good to us. It started with President [Joaquim] Chisano inviting us to come and help develop his country, and I think the government has been very proactive on that. Of course we have had our problems. Everybody does. But I’m comfortable here,” Gifford told Al Jazeera, his three dogs keeping close watch on any movement on the vast farm.

‘Life is getting better’

The farmers’ arrival has been good news to locals in this part of Mozambique. The once sleepy villages that had no jobs to offer youth have started to thrive. These two farmers together employ close to 200 local men, most of whom had previously been unemployed.

“What happened in Zimbabwe, if it happens here it will be sad for us, because he [Creswell] is helping us a lot. In this community there is a lot of unemployment,” said Jorge Alberto, a 32-year-old father of four.

Other white Zimbabwean farmers found the relocation too difficult, though. They laid down their tools and headed out of Mozambique to seek opportunities in other countries.

“Many of them gave up the fight and left. Some went to Australia and others gave up farming completely,” Creswell said.

Creswell and Gifford are two of the thriving few to have remained, and now they are reaping the rewards.

“Life is getting better and our yield is increasing every season. I have no plans of going back to Zimbabwe. My family and I are going to stay here,” said Creswell.

This article is taken from Al Jazeera.

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via MDC-T youths defy police, stage protests – New Zimbabwe 28/10/2015

POLICE in Harare Tuesday tried in vain to block hundreds of MDC-T youths who were demonstrating against the government.

The youths vowed to continue demonstrating every week until their grievances are met.

Harare MDC-T Youth Assembly Secretary Denford Ngadziore told New Zimbabwe that among their many grievances was the issue of Itai Dzamara, a journalist who was kidnapped early this year and has not been seen since.

He said they were also protesting government’s failure to provide promised jobs and make electoral reforms.

“As you are aware, it is over a year now since Dzamara was abducted by Zanu agents.

“We will continue demanding for his release and if he is dead, we want to have his body and give him a decent burial,” said an irate Ngadziore.

The demonstration started after mid-morning at corner Nelson Mandela and Chinhoyi Streets.

The youths then proceeded to First and Nelson Mandela Streets where a confrontation with police occurred but, managed to proceed to Parliament where they handed over a petition to an unnamed official.

“It is our constitutional right to demonstrate and we do not need police clearance to demonstrate.

“Let it be known that we will wait for the parliament’s response and continue demanding electoral reforms,” Ngadziore said.

Ngadziore said it was high time youths exercised their constitutional rights and pushed Mugabe and his cronies to make necessary reforms before the 2018 elections.

“This is our time to stamp our authority and get what belong to us. We are hungry, jobless and ready to confront this corrupt regime which has made our life miserable,” he added.

The Youth Organizing Secretary, Harare Province Lovejay Chitengu said they were “ready to die” because they were going through an “agonizing period” which calls for action.

Some vendors, angry with the city council which routinely harasses them, also joined in.

The youths threatened to mobilize huge crowds in their next demonstration.

“Next week you will see a much bigger crowd than the one you saw today,” Ngadziore said.

Last week MDC-T secretary general Douglas Mwonzora warned that there was going to massive protests unless the government tried to address the masses’ grievances.

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via Fifa snubs Leo Mugabe, $30, 000 wasted – New Zimbabwe 28/10/2015

THE Government blew $30, 000 on a failed bid to get Zimbabwe readmitted into the 2018 World Cup with Fifa refusing to entertain a local delegation last week, New Zimbabwe has established.

Former Zifa chairman Leo Mugabe, his then deputy and the man who eventually ousted him from office, Vincent Pamire, Zifa lawyer Ralph Maganga and two government lawyers reportedly travelled to Switzerland last week, but were embarrassingly turned away at the reception of the Fifa headquarters in Zurich.

Sources said the delegation’s airfares, accommodation and allowances gobbled $30, 000 and it could have been more had the prime mover of the doomed appeal, minister of sports Makhosini Hlongwane made the trip.

The new minister instead opted to watch the Zimbabwe-Cameroon women’s Olympic qualifier and then travelled to Lesotho for the Warriors’ Chan match on Sunday.

“Leo and Vincent were the advance party and Ralph and the other two lawyers followed later. They managed to get their visas via the Zimbabwe Embassy in Geneva as they purported they were paying a courtesy call on them.

“When they arrived there, they then went to the Fifa headquarters and asked to see Acting Fifa President Issa Hayatou, but were embarrassed to be turned away right at the reception area.

“They were told in no uncertain terms that Fifa does not entertain third parties and only deals with general secretaries and national association presidents and on appointments not ambushes.

“They had even been told by Mamelodi before they travelled (Ashford, Fifa Southern and Central Region Development Officer) that Zimbabwe will not participate in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers but they chose to go and spend the money while the Warriors were refusing to train due to unpaid allowances for their match against Lesotho,” a source NewZimbabwe this week.

Hlongwane was not available for comment but it is understood
government is still pursuing the matter via the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), based in Switzerland and have already paid $1 500 for the appeal.

Maganga, Mugabe and Pamire were also not available for comment Monday and Tuesday.

But early Wednesday morning, one member of the delegation briefly confided to NewZimbabwe.com: “Yes we went there.” Pressed on the outcome of the trip, the member was straight to the point: “Zero.”

Another source added: “It was wrong to assume that one can just walk in and demand to see the president of Fifa without prior arrangements and worse still none of the five are either the Zifa general secretary or president.

“Remember sometime in 2008, Tendai Madzorera went to Zurich without an appointment and was not granted an audience and yet, he (Madzorera) was the association vice chairman at that time.”

Zimbabwe were banned in March for failing to settle a $61, 000 debt owed to former coach Valinhos after he was fired after a doomed 2010 Africa Cup of Nations and World Cup campaign.

The figure rose to $81, 000 due to legal costs and interests.

Government eventually paid the $83, 500 debt last week before the doomed trip, after the qualifiers had already begun.

The 2018 World Cup qualifiers started last weekend and Zimbabwe, out of the 54 African nations, is the only country on the continent not participating because of the ban.

Valinhos was brought in by the Wellington Nyatanga–led administration, which had taken office in 2006 and given a specific mandate of leading the Warriors to the Afcon and World Cup finals, but failed dismally after registering only two wins in the joint qualifiers.

After he was shown the door he took up his matter with the Fifa Disciplinary Committee which proclaimed that his contract had been illegally terminated.

Between 2010 and 2014, Zifa failed to agree to a settlement deal and eventually the Fifa DC was left with no choice but to ban Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe faces another lawsuit with another former coach Tom Saintfiet claiming $150 000 after a short stint with the Warriors.

The lawsuit also threatens the country’s participation in the 2022 World Cup set for Qatar.

Saintfiet was deported for working without a work permit in contravention of Zimbabwe’s Immigration laws and Hlongwane feels that he violated the country’s laws and thus they cannot be forced to pay off someone who was at fault.

Hlongwane, after the failed bid, has reportedly turned his focus on ensuring there is enough money for the Mighty Warriors and Warriors’ preparations for the Rio Olympic Games and Chan finals in 2016 respectively.

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How does 2 GB of free data sound? Econet is hoping you’ll say exciting. The mobile operator has been offering that much in free data to anyone who buys one of the ZTE phones being sold by their devices division.

Articles appeared first on Techzim;
Econet bundles 2GB of free data with entry level smartphones

Fly Africa’s operations have been suspended after the airline surrendered its operating licence due shareholding disputes and failure to meet statutory requirements. The low cost airline’s planes have been grounded after the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe (CAAZ) suspended the airline’s operations. Earlier this week, the airline surrendered its operating licence citing operational challenges. Close

The Aspen Institute seeks nominations for one-year non-resident media skills and coaching program for next generation of global development leaders…

The post Aspen New Voices Fellowship Call for 2016 Nominations appeared first on Her Zimbabwe.

Reuters – ABUJA – Nigeria’s armed forces on Wednesday said it had rescued 338 people held captive by Boko Haram and raided a number of the Islamist militant group’s camps on the edge of its stronghold in the northeast’s Sambisa forest. The army said troops carried out a successful raid on camps on Tuesday at

The number of slaughtered pigs dropped by one percent in the first 9 months of 2015 as demand fell due to falling disposable incomes and outbreak of African swine fever, an industry official has said. Pig Industry Board director Andrew Shoniwa told The Source that 98,234 pigs were slaughtered in registered abattoirs as at September

via flyafrica.com Lays Criminal Charges Against Zimbabwe Partners – The Zimbabwean 29.10.2015

On Tuesday 27 October flyafrica.com laid serious fraud and theft charges totalling in excess of $140,000 USD against a family member of our local partner in flyafrica Zimbabwe.

flyafrica.com has also suspended the Zimbabwe partner within the airline for breach of Directorial and Fiduciary duties. Further charges are anticipated.

In retaliation the Zimbabwe partner illegally and unilaterally attempted to surrender our Air Operator Certificate to the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe (CAAZ). This raised concerns within CAAZ about the relationship between flyafrica.com and the local partner.

We are seeking a swift solution to this and will be exploring all options as this action by our Zimbabwean partner is illegal and solely designed to damage our brand by attempting to inconvenience the travel plans of our loyal customers. We strongly believe that passengers should not be used as a pressure point in a shareholder dispute.

We anticipate that the temporary flight ban will be lifted shortly. In the interim we have sourced an alternative aircraft from one of our other partners; some operations restarted on Wednesday 28 October and we anticipate normal operations from midday today, Thursday 29 October.

This conflict is deeply troubling to us, however, we cannot allow theft on such a large scale to go unresponded. Our commitment to flyafrica.com is absolute and our shareholders are backing us. This issue impacts flyafrica Zimbabwe – not the overall flyafrica.com operations.

I ask for the patience and understanding of our customers over the next 24 hrs while we deal with this. ‎Sales for all flights until Friday 30 October have ceased and any passenger that we cannot get to their destination will be offered a full refund.

Adrian Hamilton-Manns, CEO, flyafrica.com

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flyafrica.com Lays Criminal Charges Against Zimbabwe Partners
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Govt warms up to white farmers
MDC-T blames Khupe for Byo chaos
Govt must probe Parirenyatwa: Opposition MPs
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Tobacco exports hit $500m mark
New mining tax as sector struggles
Bona, in-laws in farm ‘grab’
Grace allies go for Mutsvangwa
AAG ask Chombo to ban foreign CEO
Men of violence rewarded
Fifa snubs Leo Mugabe, $30, 000 wasted
MDC-T youths defy police, stage protests
Zim white farmers start anew in Chimoio

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MDC T PRESS STATEMENT ON THE DISGRACEFUL BEHAVIOUR OF JOHANNES TOMANA PROSECUTOR GENERAL The MDC T commends the Constitutional Court for standing on the side of the common people by robustly fulfilling its constitutional duty to enforce the Constitution and defend the rule of law by slapping the Prosecutor General Johannes Tomana with a jail

Cletus Mushanawani in New Delhi, India
President Mugabe today said Africa and India should not accept being treated as dwarfs by the United Nations.

In his keynote address as the co-chairman of the third India-Africa Forum Summit held at the Indira Gandhi Stadium, which was converted into a makeshift convention centre, President Mugabe said the United Nations created a system where other countries were recognised as giants, while others were treated as dwarfs.

“Has the United Nations really united us?” he said. “Yes, it has brought us together in a kind of form where others are giants and others are dwarfs.
“We were made dwarfs at the United Nations, but why should we accept that? We have India and us who are geographical twins and together we constitute the third of the world population, but somehow the third of the world population is treated as a little kid and we say no.

“The third of the world population must be respected. It is our right to be treated equally and with respect. That is why we say let us amend the United Nations Charter to have equal nations, as we are not equal now.”

President Mugabe said Africa had agreed to have two permanent seats in the United Nations Security Council with veto power and was also backing India in its quest to have a permanent seat.

Details to follow….

Croc bitten to death by Python, VIDEO:

I recently watched Beater Gardeler’s FLOCKING and was blown away. The storyline, which centres around rape and the silence surrounding…

The post It’s Time For Zimbabwean Women to Claim Space in the Film Industry appeared first on Her Zimbabwe.

Takunda Maodza Assistant News Editor
Belvin Chibi, a Form Four pupil at the Catholic Church run Mweyamutsvene Mission, missed his third national examination paper today because he does not have school shoes, The Herald can reveal.

The pupil has already missed two examinations – English (Paper 1) and Commerce (Paper 2) after the headmaster’s wife Mrs Nyasha Rubende barred him from the examination room because he had no school shoes.

Today he did not write the remaining English paper.

Mrs Rubende is a teacher at the school at which her husband Mr Abel Zebron Rubende is the headmaster.

The Catholic Church today expressed shock at the incident amid indications Mr Rubende summoned Chibi to his office today and offered that he sits the June 2016 examinations at his cost.

It is understood Mr Rubende is also keen to engage the boy’s relatives.

Details to follow…

Ownai, the new version of Tengai wasn’t accessible for an extended interval, with visitors to the URL ownai.co.zw being directed to a page carrying a 504 Gateway Timeout error message. Usually, this is diagnosed as a network error between servers, but because of the history that Tengai had with security breaches, some people have opined that this could have been another attack.

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Ownai, the new Tengai experiences brief downtime, some suspect another hack

Drug Induced Mugabe banged by Indians Mugabe’s body fails President Robert Mugabe caused a scene on his Indian visit when he was bang-assisted to the stage by security men to walk after his knees failed. A struggling Mugabe suddenly fell into a reverse mode while attempting to walk up to the stage as ZimEye.com now

Mauritius-based Flyafrica Limited, which owns 49 percent of low cost airline Flyafrcia Zimbabwe, says its local partners acted unilaterally and illegally when they surrendered the Airline operator Certificate (AOC) to aviation authorities this week. Flyafrica Zimbabwe is a partnership between the Karase family’s Fresh Air and Flyafrica Limited. The company said in a statement on