By Felix Matasva
Three years after Cyclone Idai left a trail of destruction in Manicaland province, a local infrastructure rehabilitation initiative is rekindling ambers of hope and resilience for people left destitute by this horrendous ordeal in Chimanimani communal lands.
Depicting a silver lining in a dark cloud of a climate induced disaster, this joint localized disaster risk reduction project demonstrates effectiveness of inclusion and participation of affected communities in recovery efforts.
Rebuilding their homes outside publicized donor funded responses the salient efforts anchored on local buy-in of Nyapana villagers is a typical to traditional recovery efforts often obstructed by efforts led only by central government and development partners.
In fostering partnerships with locals, development partners sourced funds and infrastructure materials, while the community is commandeering rehabilitation works of their ravaged homes and seizing livelihood opportunities in a model of sustainable post disaster recovery.
Enia Munjokodi from Nyapana village embodies resilience of the marginalized rural community as she leads from the front to rebuild local homesteads and other essential macro infrastructure.
Munjokodi like thousands of villagers was left homeless by this unprecedented cyclone losing her modest grass thatched mud house to ferocious winds and heavy rains which plummeted Zimbabwe and other regional countries in March 2019.
In Zimbabwe alone, Cyclone Idai claimed lives, livestock of as well as displacing 60,000 people at a recovery cost of estimated US$1.1 billion by the UN to restore infrastructure and livelihoods.
The resulting loss in GDP of 4.2% led to Zimbabwe ranking second behind neighboring Mozambique in the Global Climate Index of countries most impacted by climate change.
Chimanimani district nestled on the Mozambique borderline faces a heightened risk in eastern Zimbabwe as extreme weather events become more frequent leaving behind trails of infrastructure destruction, livelihoods cost, livestock and untimely human deaths.
Fortunately, Munjokodi has found solace after being selected among almost 130 community workers to rehabilitate Tiya road as well as securing a new home- a climate resilient house under a World Bank funded project.
The rehabilitation exercise is implemented under a United Nations (UN) projected Zimbabwe Idai Recovery Project, coordinated by its agency UNOPS.
A general hand is paid US$1 per hour, a supervisor US$1.20 per hour while those under skilled labour are paid US$1.50 per hour.
Like Munjokodi laborers are locals drawn mainly from female headed families and strategically targeted at young women and men as well as pregnant women which are given minimal and lighter tasks.