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NATIONAL ASSEMBLY HANSARD 18 FEBRUARY 2025 VOL 51 No. 25

PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE

Tuesday, 18^th February, 2025

The National Assembly met at a Quarter-past Two o’clock p.m.

PRAYERS

(THE HON. SPEAKER in the Chair)

ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE HON. SPEAKER

OBSERVANCE OF STANDING RULES AND ORDERS

         THE HON. SPEAKER:  In terms of our Standing Orders, we have our prayers by Ten past Two o’clock p.m. and I see some Members trickling in.  May I remind all the Members that you should be here by Five past Two o’clock p.m. to be ready for prayers? 

         Further to that, last week I noticed that there has been a tendency again for Hon. Members to disengage after appearing for 30 minutes or so, disappear and do not come back.  May I remind you of your oath that you are supposed to abide by the Constitution and all the laws of Zimbabwe?  The Constitution requires you to service Parliament and the electorate to the best of your abilities, that is how the oath ends.  Let us not invite some measures that should be applied. Some of them may be very discomforting indeed. We do not want to do that. Just speak to your conscience and your title of being Honourable and stay put when you have come here.  Come in time and we start with our prayers together. 

         I have a request from four Hon. Members who want to make statements on some issues of national interest, can you stick to one minute? 

         *HON. T. CHIKOMO: Good afternoon Hon. Speaker.  In Harare, we are facing a challenge regarding the battle between commuter omnibuses and the police.  You would find that there are running battles between the police and commuter omnibus operators.  The police will be targeting commuter omnibuses and when commuter omnibuses are offloading people, the rank marshals tip them off and they try to evade the police. You would find that passengers get hurt and some are affected by that Hon. Speaker, this is not sustainable. As a nation, I think we need to enact laws which will help in this situation because now people are no longer free because of the races between the commuter omnibus and the police. I thank you.

*THE HON. SPEAKER: If they are not guilty, why do they run away? Do innocent people run away? If a car is stationary and the driver is in the car, when the police comes, why do people run away when they are innocent? So, inform combi drivers to drive their vehicles accordingly. There is no need to run away.

    +HON. O. SIBANDA: Good afternoon Hon. Speaker. I want to thank you for this opportunity. When we were going for the festive season last year, His Excellency, the President gave Hon. Members rice for distribution and we believe that this should continue so that all Zimbabwean citizens continue to benefit from such an initiative. It is a good initiative, especially for us women who are not representing any constituency.

*THE HON. SPEAKER: I did not understand Hon. Member, what exactly is the main issue?

         *HON. O. SIBANDA: The issue is that the Presidential food interventions being distributed by MPs do not select as they also benefit old people. I am referring to this because this happened in the past holiday, where people were given food. I thank you Hon. Speaker.

         *THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Member, you are referring to the distribution of rice, His Excellency, the President is not Father Christmas but he gives like what he did when he distributed rice and indeed you cascaded the donations down to the communities and this is a good initiative. So, when His Excellency gets another supply, he is going to distribute it to the people. I hope you understood me Hon. Member. Thank you.

HON. CHIGUMBU: Thank you Mr. Speaker. My point of national interest Mr. Speaker, concerns the payments that are being made to the BIPPA farmers by the Ministry of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion. It is a good thing that our country is honouring its commitments. I would want to bring to the attention of this House that we need to be cognisant of the fact that there are some historical injustices that happened as these people acquired the land. It is a good thing that the Ministry is saying they are paying these people for the developments that were made on the land that was repossessed around 2000. However, they should also not be blind to the fact that the developments that these people are now being paid for, actually came as a result of labour practises that were near to slavery and our grandfathers are no longer there to be part and parcel or to also claim with these farmers to say they also contributed to the development of that particular piece of land as well as not being treated fairly. It is also sad that this whole arrangement seems not to be taking into consideration these people who participated in the development of these particular pieces of land.

Secondly Mr. Speaker, there were also farmers who were affected who were working on these farms and due to the way the land reform programme took place, they were displaced and this whole arrangement is silent on how these people are going to be compensated.

The third aspect is that when the land was re-distributed, the big guys are the ones who took parts of the farm land which was properly developed and l can tell that they are not part and parcel of this whole arrangement. My prayer is that, can this arrangement include a model whereby these people who are going to receive the payments of the developments that they have done on these pieces of land also pay the people who worked on these pieces of land, which they were not paid fairly during the time they were working on these pieces of land?

 I understand most of these people are no longer alive but is it not also prudent Mr. Speaker Sir, to say that they can give back to the communities where their farms are located so that they can also pay something? The reason would be because they are now benefiting from something they did not pay for inasmuch as we are talking about the developments that were done on the pieces of land that they are now being paid for.

My prayer is, can the arrangement include a model whereby these people who are going to receive this payment also pay something for what they did not pay for during the time when land was being developed? As I sit down Mr. Speaker Sir, I just want to let you know that this point of national interest is coming from a mind of a patriot and from a heart of a Pan-Africanist. I thank you

THE HON. SPEAKER: I hear the Pan-Africanist Hon. Member, who is also a nationalist, I believe to some extent. Why do you not ask that question tomorrow to the Minister responsible so that we can be guided accordingly?

HON. MUSHORIWA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.  Mine is a point of privilege as per Standing Order 73 as read with standing order 72(d). On 18^th September, 2024, you made an announcement following the mid-term review. You made an announcement that Treasury had availed USD50 000 for Constituency Development Fund (CDF) and on 7^th November 2024 during the Pre-Budget Seminar in Bulawayo, the Hon. Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion, Prof. Mthuli Ncube, made an undertaking that he was going to ensure that the payment of CDF funds was going to be done before the budget announcement. Then on 17^th December, 2024 the Minister of Finance made an undertaking during the debate on the budget that the 2024 CDF was going to be paid before the end of December 2024.

The Hon. Minister did not fulfil his undertaking and we expected when you came last week that maybe the Hon. Minister was going to come before the august House and apologise to the Hon. Members. As you can see,  the pattern that the Hon. Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion, when he is put into a corner by Hon. Members, he makes undertakings that he knows he is unable or unwilling to fulfil within the specified period.

So to that extent Mr. Speaker Sir, as per the provision of the Privileges Immunities and Powers of Parliament Act [Chapter 208], Appendix b, the Hon. Minister, in my view, has been presenting to Parliament false, untrue and fabricated information with the intention to deceive Parliament. Secondly, he has been prevaricating as a Member in this august House. So, to that end, I think it is high time that in this House, I move this motion on privileges on our esteemed Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion for the continued systematic ununiformed things that he has done over the past few months, I thank you.

         THE HON. SPEAKER: Thank you very much Hon. Mushoriwa. I suggest you raise the question tomorrow before we activate the Privileges Act on the Minister.

         HON. MUSHORIWA: Thank you Mr. Speaker.

MOTION

BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE

         HON. KAMBUZUMA: I move that Orders of the Day, Numbers 1 to 5 be stood over until Order of the Day Number 6 has been disposed of.

         HON. C. MOYO: I second.

Motion put and agreed to.

MOTION

REPORT OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON HEALTH AND CHILD CARE ON NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASES

         Sixth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Report of the Portfolio Committee on Health and Child Care on Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) including Cancer.

         Question again proposed.

         *HON. L. MUNEMO: Just to take note that people refer to me as Hon. I. Munemo but I am L. Munemo, ‘L’ for Labbany Munemo, Mt. Darwin North Constituency.

         I want to add a few words to the report that was presented by the Health Committee and I will say much on our local hospitals, particularly those in rural areas especially in my constituency. We have people who suffer from cancer, other chronic illnesses and other diseases which affect the rural populace. Most of these diseases are caused by inadequate healthcare facilities because there are few hospitals and clinics. Sometimes people do not seek medical attention because they have to walk long distances.

         In Mt. Darwin, people have to walk distances of 15 to 20 km. When a person falls ill, then the relatives have to determine if the person is sick enough to be taken to the hospital because of the long distances. I believe the Government should add more clinics and hospitals to cater for people in different communities so that people do not have to walk long distances. If that happens, this will help people who sometimes do not seek medical attention because of long distances.

         Some might be suffering from cancer but they persevere believing that they will be well. I want to believe that if our clinics are nearer to the people, then this will be beneficial to our people as they will be diagnosed early and their illnesses attended to. Sometimes you find that some people are diagnosed of cancer at a late stage because they could not visit the medical facilities earlier and are not aware of their condition. So, I believe that it is important to have hospitals close to the communities.

         On the same note, I want to suggest that there be more healthcare workers because sometimes the health facilities are understaffed and patients have to wait for long hours before being attended to. Sometimes patients end up leaving the facilities to go back home to rest. In the meantime, illnesses will be getting worse and when eventually the patient goes back to the hospital, the condition will be worse.

         There is also a lot of corruption in our public healthcare facilities. Sometimes there is a serious case of illness but you find our healthcare workers favouring their relatives at the expense of those patients who would have come before them. The other challenge is the issue of infrastructure in our healthcare facilities. There are a lot of things that should be added to our hospitals so that the sick can receive adequate treatment. Opportunities like the one that I am alluding to are few because you find that some clinics are really not adequate. There is no proper infrastructure and proper equipment. Because of the inadequacy of infrastructure, you find some women giving birth on the floor without proper bedding and facilities. This is because we have few clinics and hospitals.

The other issue is the issue of prices that are charged by doctors in hospitals. Sometimes when people pay consultation fees, you would find that the doctor would charge a lot of money which sometimes is not affordable by the patient, which means that they will be forced to look for the money. Hon. Speaker, this issue should be looked into and Government should intervene for the benefit of the sick. For example, when there is an accident and someone has been hurt or injured, it might take a long time for them to be attended to. The money that they are expected to pay might be beyond their ability and this may lead to the patient’s health deteriorating. For example, if it is a broken leg, then the leg might eventually get infected.

If someone goes to a hospital, I have an example of an uncle who had a cancerous infection in his nose and was told to come back to the hospital after three months. However, he could not survive for a week. Doctors give inadequate time for reviews. Sometimes they give long periods and people end up succumbing to their illnesses before going for review.

The other issue that is affecting our hospitals Hon. Speaker Sir, is the issue of our roads to healthcare facilities. You would find that ambulances are sometimes supposed to take 30 minutes or so but the roads are bad. An ambulance cannot be driven fast enough as it should and this might compromise the condition of the patient because of the poor state of roads. So, I urge the Ministry of Transport to work on the road network so that our healthcare facilities and ambulances will be able to ferry people without any risk to the patients.

The other issue is that the Government should bring in the aspect of subsidies, especially in district hospitals, provincial hospitals and rural hospitals because there are some people who are poor who cannot pay to get medical attention. They might not be able to raise even USD5, yet the patient would have been diagnosed of having cholera and this might result in the cholera spreading throughout the community. Maybe only one person was supposed to be treated of the disease but eventually many get infected. I believe we need to assist the Ministry of Health and Child Care through digital health trackers and these will be very useful in terms of identifying illnesses at an early stage.

I also note that our nurses in hospitals deserve to be paid decent salaries because these are the people who maintain or help us to have healthy lifestyles. I thank you Hon. Speaker for that opportunity.

         * HON. MAPIKI: Thank you Hon. Speaker. I want to appreciate the good work that was done by the Portfolio Committee on Health. I believe that lack of proper medication for cancer, asthma, tuberculosis and other illnesses should be corrected. I noted that in other countries like China, 20% of the budget goes to health, particularly traditional and allopathic medicines. Looking at the war that is in DRC, there are many resources but the medicines that we find in DRC bushes are the ones that are being extracted by the Chinese and they are using them in their hospitals. There is a department responsible for traditional medicines and I believe that in Zimbabwe, we need to consider that.

         Hon. Speaker, a lot of people were concerned when President Trump came into power and he stopped healthcare funding and AIDS support. Indeed, we are seeing the residual effects and I believe that we need to brainstorm about the use of traditional medicines. I believe that African Governments, including Zimbabwe should consider really utilising traditional medicines. When you look at cancer, it is mostly caused by sugary foods, the food that we consume.

I want to thank the President, Dr. E. D. Mnangagwa for the traditional and nutritional gardens, which provide foods that are rich in all the nutrients that we need.  You would find that diseases like tuberculosis (TB), asthma, malaria and many others, I have noticed that some people are using herbs to treat these.  Some are using them to treat acids.  In Nigeria, they are using papaya or pawpaw tree to treat certain diseases.  Some are also using it for detoxing the body, removing toxins that might be in the system.

         Our researchers should interrogate this issue so that traditional medicines are used.  I am really touched…

         THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Member, there is no mushonga wechibhoyi but there is mushonga wechivanhu, which is traditional medicine.

         *HON. NYABANI: Hon. Speaker, traditional medicines, during Prof. Gordon Chavhunduka’s time, he used to move around with his team and we did not support him as we did not support Daniel Chingoma when he was inventing his aeroplane.  So, we need to really interrogate these issues.  We need to look at how we can utilise traditional medicines.  In the past when we look at health issues, there were mobile clinics which would get into communities attending to different illnesses.  I want to thank Government for re-introducing the same concept of village health workers but sometimes they do not have the capacity to treat different illnesses like malaria.  I believe that Government should consider that – looking at TB, asthma and other illnesses, we have a challenge as Zimbabwe because when we look at mining, there are a lot of toxic chemicals that are used which cause asthma and TB.  For example, mercury which is used in mining gold and when burnt, it gets into lungs and when it clots in there, it affects the breathing process.  Especially when you look at mercury that is used in streams, that mercury can be consumed by aquatic species like fish.  When people consume such fish, then they might also be infected. 

         When we look at the mines, there is no proper ventilation and miners spend most of their time underground and they are exposed to such illnesses.  If you also look at how we build our homes, you would find that in the rural areas, there are small round huts, which have a small window or do not have a window at all.  When people are in that hut having no proper ventilation, they are exposed to asthma, TB and other cardio vascular illnesses.  As a nation, we need to consider some of the things that we do.  When we look at illnesses like TB and asthma and some skin cancers which we see in children and farmers, these come from herbicides that are used during cultivation process, where you find people apply herbicides without protective clothing.  This affects the cardio vascular system and some eye illnesses and skin rashes come as a result of that.

         The Health Committee really looked at a lot of issues.  We went to different hospitals and we went to mortuaries.  When you look at the conditions that you find in most of our mortuaries, there are some bodies which have been in mortuaries for three years or so.  Now they are releasing a pungent smell, for instance at Sally Mugabe (former Harare Hospital), even doctors and other workers cannot really work under such conditions.  When you go to such mortuaries, it will be very difficult for you to eat meat because of the smell that you find coming from such mortuaries.  This might expose employees to rashes and other diseases.  I believe that as Government, we need to look into the issue of mortuaries and build mortuaries with adequate space, which are able to accommodate employees and the dead bodies a bit far away from each other.  Workers at Sally Mugabe hospital who still eat meat are strong because the situation is bad.

         Government should enact laws which protect the dispensation of medicines in public hospitals because you find that sometimes in hospitals people take out medicines. May be this is because they earn low salaries but there are security guards – sometimes they engage people who are not trained to be security guards and they are not able to search people thoroughly.  Healthcare workers also import medicines from Zambia and they sell these medicines to patients.  When they attend to patients, instead of writing prescriptions so that patients can buy medicines, they sell their own medicines to patients.  I think the Minister of Health should interrogate the issue of Zambian medicines which are cheaper than our local medicines.  There is need for an investigation as to how they are cheaper than our local medicines.  This means that in most public hospitals, healthcare workers do not attend to people freely but they attend to people so that they can sell medicines to them.

         Lastly, the issue of doctors should be looked into, to ascertain whether they are discharging their duties properly.  We notice that they spend most of their time at their private surgeries instead of the public hospitals, which affects patients at public hospitals.  There should be a law which guides their operations.  The law should stipulate that doctors should commit most of their time to public hospitals so that they can attend to people with emergencies.  For example, those who would have been involved in accidents.

         Lastly, I thank His Excellency, President Dr. E.D. Mnangagwa for introducing helicopter ambulances which attend to emergencies.  Before sitting down, I want to suggest that our retired healthcare personnel should open their own clinics also so that we have many private clinics which will attend to people.  I thank you.

^*HON. MAKUMIRE: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir, for giving me this opportunity. I want to thank the committee for their report, I am going to focus on their observations. The issue of public sector healthcare workers is an important one. It was indicated that there are no doctors and nurses in our public hospitals and because most health workers have left the country for greener opportunities, I believe that these are people who could have been helping us in fighting this pandemic of cancer. If the Government wants to achieve its objective of having an upper middle income economy, it needs to retain the trained health personnel so that our healthcare facilities can also be upper middle class.

Hon. Speaker Sir, patients are now being attended to by nurse aides, those who studied nurse aide courses, yet we are supposed to be having our trained doctors and highly educated personnel. The people we represent who are in rural areas are concerned by the state of public hospitals.

I also want to look at the issue of infrastructure in our public hospitals. The report indicated that most hospitals do not give the green light to patients because when they look at the state of the infrastructure, it would be dilapidated. Sometimes there is no clean water and electricity in these hospitals where patients will be treated for different illnesses including cancer. Some issues are very small that they do not require people to congregate in order to solve these challenges. What has led us to be in this situation is because those who are responsible do not get treatment from local hospitals.

Hon. Speaker Sir, this august House should take a day where the Executive visits public hospitals to see the state of the hospitals. I am happy with what Hon. Minister Mhona and Hon. Minister Garwe did when they went to Beitbridge after that accident which happened there. They went to witness the situation after noting that some people were injured and were covered by boxes. We cannot attain the upper middle class economy if our Ministers are seeking medical attention in foreign countries. The hospitals are in a dire state. You will find that there are beds without blankets, patients being carried by open trucks. This shows that we do not really have the will to eliminate this problem.

This august House has a responsibility of enacting laws which will guide us, so I believe that we need to enact laws which will require the Executive and you Hon. Speaker, to be treated locally until the issue of healthcare facilities has been fixed. On the same note, the machines that are used to attend to cancer patients are not functional. Some ceased to operate in 2021 and they have not been fixed yet. So, you would find people doing what they want with our resources. In the past few months, you would find someone distributing cars as if one is distributing grains to chickens. So, we need to interrogate such issues and investigate where the money is coming from. I was reading the report and I believe that there are some machines which will be bought using sugar tax from the 30,8 million. These are things that we need to accept but you would note that these hospitals are far from other places, for example in Chiredzi where I come from, deep down in Chikombedzi, people travel to Harare to seek medical attention and they will not be able to see the doctor who might be committed in other hospitals. They are asked to come the following month. The money which is supposed to be benefitting the patient sometimes is consumed by transport expenses.

The other issue is that we have been benefitting from US Aid where we were lacking but after its withdrawal, where do we seek help from when we do not have money? We need to sit down and Government should consider extending finances to cater for the people’s needs. The money which is being collected from the people should be taken back to the people to solve their challenges. We now find that we just look at each other - the sick and those who are not. This issue should be looked at as a matter of urgency. The nine months that were alluded to, that within that period we will be having machines is quite a long period. When you send a man who is full, that person does not come back because they are full. Madam Speaker, we need to work hard to eliminate this challenge.

The other point that was raised by the Committee is the issue that cancer treatment centres should cascade down to district level because our relatives in rural areas travel long distances. When there is decentralisation of cancer health centres, they will not travel long distances.

The other issue is that of vehicles that carry the sick.  Most of our ambulances are not in a good state. Some of them require push-start for them to move. Madam Speaker, if Government is facing a challenge in terms of buying ambulances, then there should be a budget towards purchasing and repair of the ambulances. Some may be in various conditions but you would find that at a hospital, only one ambulance will be working. The rest will not be in a condition to ferry patients. Sometimes they are being used by doctors to buy food for healthcare workers. It would be quite pleasing to hear that Government has distributed 10 vehicles instead of a situation where you find an individual distributing vehicles. The general populace is not happy. We might not be getting that feedback but the people of Zimbabwe are not happy about the healthcare situation. …

*HON. MUGWADI:  On a point of order Madam Speaker.

THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER:  What is your point of order?

*HON. MUGWADI:  Thank you Madam Speaker. We are normally encouraged when we raise issues as Hon. Members that we do not base them on assumptions. We must base them on the truth. So, I cannot remain quiet when there are false statements that are being said. This august House needs to know where the free vehicles are being distributed. Maybe we might also benefit from the distribution. I thank you.

*THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER:  Thank you Hon. Mugwadi. Did Hon. Makumire say that Government is distributing cars?  If the Hon. Member said that Government is distributing cars, were you alluding to the distribution of ambulances Hon. Member? May you repeat what you said Hon. Makumire?

*HON. MAKUMIRE:  Thank you Madam Speaker. The complaints that are coming from people are that you have …

*THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER:  You have finished your statement but people might be complaining because it is just an individual who is distributing vehicles. Whatever name you may allude to, whether it is zvigananda or what, it is just a rich individual who is not Government – [AN HON. MEMBER:  On a point of order.] – You cannot raise a point of order whilst I am still talking Hon. Member. People might be angry at an individual who has nothing to do with them because it is not Government which is distributing cars. It is just an individual not Government. Hon. Makumire, may you proceed.

*HON. MAKUMIRE:  Thank you Madam Speaker. I want to look at the issue of research and development. As Government, we need to fund the research and development initiatives, particularly on cancer because we rely on information from other countries regarding cancer. We are far behind as a nation. It is important that as a nation we should be abreast with current research. This does not augur well.

The other issue Madam Speaker …

*THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER:  Hon. Makumire, you are left with five minutes.

*HON. MAKUMIRE:  Madam Speaker, the issue of cancer awareness and how the disease affects people, the symptoms and other issues pertaining to cancer should be disseminated to people in different peripheral areas of the country. Even in Mugwadi’s area, there are people who face such challenges …

*THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER:  Order Hon. Makumire! When referring to Hon. Members in this august House, we do not say kwaana Mugwadi. We refer to them as Hon. Members. It is Hon. Mugwadi, not Mugwadi.

*HON. MAKUMIRE:  Thank you Madam Speaker. I was not referring to Hon. Mugwadi’s area…

HON. MUGWADI:  Point of order Madam Speaker.

*THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER:  What is your point of order Hon. Mugwadi?

*HON. MUGWADI:  In this august House Madam Speaker, when you caution someone that I am Hon. Mugwadi, then that person should say that I am Hon. Mugwadi. If the Hon. Member does not do as you say, then I would say zvimbwasungata Makumire.  I will use the same language because that language is not parliamentary and should not be used in this august House. When someone has been cautioned by the Chair, then the Hon. Member should follow what is acceptable – [HON. MEMBERS:  Inaudible interjections.] –

*THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER:  Order!  Thank you Hon. Mugwadi. I believe that you heard me and you are someone whom we saw graduating. We do not expect you to compete with someone who does not know how the law operates. Hon. Makumire, proceed.

         *HON. MAKUMIRE: Thank you Madam Speaker, the issue of graduation must not…

         *THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: You are digressing Hon. Member and I now ask you to sit down. Your time is up.

         HON. KUKA: On a point of order Madam Speaker.

         THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: What is your point of order?

         *HON. KUKA: Madam Speaker, I move that Hon. Makumire’s time be extended by two minutes. – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] - 

         Motion put and negatived.

         ⁺HON. M. NKOMO: Thank you Hon. Speaker for awarding me this opportunity to add my voice to this motion that was brought in by Hon. Makombe. I will add my voice, especially on health issues.  There are diseases that are becoming more prevalent like cancer, high blood pressure and sugar diabetes.  I will also touch on HIV/AIDS that has been ravaging our country. 

         Hon. Speaker Ma’am, people tend to visit hospitals when it is too late and they also travel long distances to go to health facilities.  They do not have funds to board public transport.  This has also increased the number of deaths to people who are suffering from these diseases.  More pharmacies must be built and we must do more research on our traditional herbs so that these diseases can be curbed.   We must also have awareness campaigns in rural areas and we must have more testing centres so that people do not have to travel long distances, I thank you.

         HON. CHAKUKURA: Thank you Madam Speaker.  Madam Speaker Ma’am, NCDs can be caused by a combination of factors, including life style choices; predispositions and environmental influences, lifestyle choices that include unhealthy diets, smoking, physical inactivity and alcohol consumption as well as genetical factors that include hereditary conditions and family history of NCDs and cancer.  Environmental factors include pollution, occupational hazards and radiation exposure. Infections are also factors in which viral infections and bacterial infections’ constant reoccurrence can cause such diseases.

         Also factors like obesity, hormonal changes and age can increase the risk of NCDs and cancer.  Prevention and managing of such diseases require public awareness and education. The Ministry should take it upon itself to promote regular screenings in communities so that each and every month, someone will come for screening of cancer. They might not do it monthly but encourage and educate them to visit the hospitals and clinics for cancer screening.

         A lot of people carry the human papilloma virus and a lot of people have no idea that not skipping vaccinations for children under the age of five can prevent communicable disease such as HPV and hepatitis which can lead to cancer.  Immunisations must be taken seriously and the vaccinations should be readily available.  In certain remote areas like Chipinge, vaccinations are not readily available, women have to walk for long distances just to go to the nearest clinic. 

         Madam Speaker, why not introduce mobile clinics, the same mobile clinics that are there for the immune boosters so that people do not have to walk for long distances which they might end up avoiding by staying at home.   Like the saying goes; ‘When Muhammad does not go to the mountain, the mountain goes to Muhammad’, meaning that people must adapt to circumstances rather than waiting for them to change. It emphasises the importance of flexibility and initiative in problem solving. 

         So, there must be mobile clinics for immunisations to prevent such diseases.  There must also be access to affordable health services. By services, I just do not mean seeing healthcare practitioners but affordable radiology services and machines that are functional. 

         Madam Speaker Ma’am, the hospitals are failing to service machines and people end up going to expensive private hospitals.  Our hospitals are failing to service these machines because of sanctions.  That is why things like sugar tax were introduced so that the country can get money and also fight NCDs in the process.  The Ministry should also fund research and surveillance systems to inform the public and research on new treatments and preventive measures for such diseases.  There is need for benchmark visits for our oncologists and theatre nurses.  Our oncologists need to visit other countries that are advanced on cancer treatment and learn how they cope with such diseases.

         Madam Speaker Ma’am, Heather Morgan once said, ‘every time you eat or drink, you either fight a disease or you feed it’.  NCDs can also be prevented if the Ministry constantly reminds people on television and radios on eating healthy and drinking healthy until it becomes a record and people sing it in their sleep.  People should stay informed on NCDs and cancer and with this Madam Speaker, I so submit.

         HON. TOBAIWA: Thank you Madam Speaker.  I would like to add my voice on the report which was brought to this House by the Chairperson of the Health Committee, Hon. Makombe.  This is a very important report on the NCDs including cancer in our communities. The Portfolio Committee on Health and Child Care has conducted a thorough assessment of our current healthcare system’s ability to combat these diseases and findings are deeply concerning.  Statistics indicate that the NCDs now account for 36% of our people’s deaths in Zimbabwe.  These diseases such as cancer, diabetes and other chronic illness are no longer just illnesses but are increasingly affecting our people in the communities.

         Cancer in particular, has become a silent killer disease with many cases diagnosed at an advanced stage due to limited screening and awareness campaigns.  Our hospitals and healthcare centres are struggling under because of these diseases due to inadequate infrastructure, nonfunctional Radiotherapy machines, limited renal treatment facilities and medical equipment has made access to treatment difficult. 

         Shortages of skilled personnel – many doctors and specialists continue to leave the country in search of better opportunities leaving our hospitals without skilled personnel.  The healthcare sector suffers from financial constraints making essential medicines and treatment unaffordable for many citizens.  Limited public awareness - many people still lack knowledge about the risk factors of these diseases leading to unhealthy lifestyle that contribute to these illnesses.

Recommendations

1. Revamping heath care infrastructure - The Government must invest in the maintenance and upgrading of essential medical equipment, particularly for cancer treatment and renal care. We need incentives to retain medical professionals and provide continuous training to enhance skills.
2. Increase funding - The Ministry of Health and Child Care must allocate resources to NCDs management and reduce the burden of our out-of-pocket expenses on patients.

• Enhancing Community Awareness - Nationwide education campaigns should be launched to promote healthy lifestyles and encourage screening for NCDs.

         Madam Speaker Ma’am, the fight against NCDs in cancer is not just a health issue but it is an economic and social one.  If we fail to act, we will continue to lose productive citizens, over-burden our hospitals and also the crisis is in our healthcare systems.

         I call upon the House to prioritise healthcare funding to improve infrastructure and implement policies to ensure that every Zimbabwean has access to quality healthcare. Let us work together to build our nation so that we can protect our citizens. I so submit – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] -

         ^*HON. P. MOYO: Thank you Madam Speaker Ma’am and good afternoon.  I want to support the report which was presented by the Portfolio Committee on Health.  We have heard a lot in this august House regarding these illnesses like cancer and other new illnesses.  Some were there in the past, some are new.  It is a good thing that was done by the Committee to look at what is happening around the country. 

         I want to add that a lot of our hospitals need attention, both big hospitals and even district hospitals. I come from Mwenezi, you find that some hospitals do not have a proper mortuary. People end up facing challenges when there is need for a postmortem, which results in people travelling for long distances in order for them to get a pathologist to do the postmortem. 

         There is need for mortuaries to be refurbished.  It is also a good thing to have good healthcare facilities.  I want to congratulate His Excellency, Dr. E. D. Mnangagwa who brought in new machines at Parirenyatwa and other hospitals.  There are theaters which are fully equipped and for a patient to be treated there, you would find that it is quite expensive, which means that doctors might end up using such facilities at their surgeries.

         There must be laws which stipulate what should be done with public equipment in hospitals so that doctors do not personalise such equipment.  You would find that as a result of exorbitant fees, people do not go to private hospitals because they cannot afford the facilities that are offered.

There should be guidelines governing the doctors because you would find that they work in public hospitals during the day and they later go to their private hospitals.  We end up not knowing whether they are really treating people or they just write a note referring people to their private surgeries.

In rural areas, many people cannot afford doctors.  Some end up going to apostolic sects or other prophets who can give them assistance.  It is important to have access to hospitals.  There must be good hospitals in rural areas – fully equipped hospitals. 

Government should look into that issue. There should be doctors dedicated in public hospitals who do not just wait to attend patients in their private facilities. If hospitals are fully equipped, this will benefit people.

Looking at our universities - during the COVID era, we had sanitisers which were manufactured by our universities. This helped a lot to curb the spread of COVID-19. Researchers from our universities protected people from COVID-19 much better compared to other countries.  So, our universities should carry out research even in traditional medicines.  We might not know the dosage and other things but this requires researchers and qualified people who have the expertise to determine the dosage of the traditional medicines. 

This is what we require Government to do in terms of funding innovation hubs and universities.  Some are taking the sick to other countries like India.  We have a lot of beautiful hospitals in Zimbabwe and some are expensive.  They all have medication but most of those hospitals are expensive – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] –

^*THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER:  Order. Hon. P. Moyo, do not respond to other Honourable Members, may you continue with your submission. 

*HON. P. MOYO: Thank you Madam Speaker, let me continue saying that there is medication in hospitals – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – there are beautiful new hospitals which have medication – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – 

Madam Speaker, may I be protected from enemies.

         ^*THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER:  Honourable Members, you will be given your time to say out your mind. 

         HON. SAGANDIRA: Point of order Madam Speaker.

         THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: What is your point of order Honourable Sagandira?

         *HON. SAGANDIRA: On a point of order Madam Speaker.  The Hon. Speaker cannot protect a liar …

         *THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order! Order Hon. Sagandira! There are private hospitals which have medication, the Hon. Member did say Mwenezi.  Please do not disturb her. If you continue interjecting and disturbing her, I am going to eject someone out of this august House. 

         *HON. P. MOYO:  Thank you Hon. Speaker Ma’am and let me say that private hospitals are indeed there.  Hospitals like Harare, Parirenyatwa and private hospitals need funding and support so that they will be able to attend to people. 

         *HON. KUKA:  On a point of order Madam Speaker.  Thank you Madam Speaker Ma’am. I want to request that the Hon. Member clarify because private hospitals and public hospitals are different. This report is targeted at our Ministry of Health and Child Care and if it refers to public hospitals, then the Hon. Member should clarify when referring to such.  We have hospitals like Parirenyatwa, Harare Hospital, Chiredzi Hospital and other hospitals. 

THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: The Hon. Member has already clarified and you are behind Hon. Member.  May you continue Hon. Mayo?

*HON. P. MOYO:  Thank you Hon. Speaker. Hospitals are there, people do not see them, they are fully stocked in this country and there are some hospitals where you go for cancer treatment.  There is radiotherapy, chemotherapy and other forms of therapy but they are not affordable by people from different areas.   Someone cannot come from Chiredzi to be attended but we desire that hospitals like Neshuro Hospital in Mwenezi should have access to such medication so that people do not travel long distances. They are attended to from the community health centres because it is expensive. 

Madam Speaker, I also want to request that Government should look at transport for public hospitals, for example, in my constituency, there is a challenge. You find that sometimes there is only one ambulance.  The district is quite big, so this is one of the issues that we desire the Ministry of Health to look into so that people’s healthcare facilities are improved. 

We also want to thank the First Lady, through her organisation the Angel of Hope, she is moving around educating people about cancer screening.  We need more non-governmental organisations which are going to come in and emulate what Dr. Auxillia Mnangagwa is doing.  I was in Masvingo and women of Masvingo were quite impressed. They were very happy with the good work taking place, equipment and other facilities are there, people are being screened and tested and some are being treated.  We desire that those who are able to open non-governmental organisations should do so.  We have people who have money in the country; may they also be allowed to assist in that regard?  Madam Speaker, with those few words, I want to thank you. 

*HON. SAMSON: Thank you Madam Speaker for giving me the opportunity to add my voice to the report which was presented by the Portfolio Committee on Health and Child Care.  My words pertain to cancer, nhuta or mbeva.  It is a disease which is quite bad, especially if the diagnosis is done at a later stage.  If this happens, it will have destroyed the body cells and sometimes it becomes very difficult to treat.  I want to appreciate our Government which is led by His Excellency, Dr. E. D. Mnangagwa, a man of wisdom.  The donation that was done by His Excellency when he donated machinery to our public hospitals so that people can have free cancer screening and treatment is much appreciated.  It is quite important to educate people in communities, especially women who are mostly affected by cancer. 

I want to thank the First Lady who is going around different provinces with doctors, medication and machinery educating people about cancer, even men are being attended to, they are being treated.  I want to appreciate that because she is going to different communities with the challenges that people face and because of the drought that we faced last year, it was difficult for people to travel to hospitals.  It is important to have mobile treatment units and mobile testing units like what has been happening.  I also want to thank the initiative of having clinics in different communities, the building of new clinics, some have been opened and others have not been opened yet but I want to request that in areas where clinics have been opened, the Ministry of Health should also avail medication in rural areas because you would find that when you go to a local hospital, you might be referred to a provincial hospital. So, my desire is that many places and even where I come from in Chiredzi, there are clinics in farms, some have been opened. What we request is, may I please be protected Hon. Speaker Ma`am. My request is that even in hospital and farms, there must be medication which will benefit people in such communities because of that, I request that there should be electricity in mortuaries through out the day. Mortuaries should not be affected by load shedding because sometimes, bodies spend time in mortuaries. When the mortuaries are affected by load shedding, you would find that people might not be comfortable on going to mortuaries because of the smell that will be coming from mortuaries due to power cuts.

I want to continue by saying that, as women, we are normally affected by cancer and if possible, I would request that Parliament deploys women on outreach programme where there will be dissemination of information on the importance of cancer screening and testing because our relatives in the rural areas do not know and understand that when diagnosed with this disease at an early stage, the disease can be treated. Those who are in urban areas already know as they watch television and have access to such information. Those who do not watch on television or do not listen to radios sometimes might not have access to such information.

I request for outreach programmes so that our people might not be affected by things that can be treated. Even the word of God says that my people perish because of lack of knowledge. When we go out for such public outreach programmes, this would benefit the people. This is a request and Zimbabwe is a big country, so it is important that we carry out such an outreach programme.

Furthermore, when we look at the past years, on issue to do with healthcare, there was a disease which affected a lot of people, which is cholera. During rainy, season the prevalence of cholera will be quite high and affects a lot of people because people drink water which flows in streams. Sometimes the water will be contaminated. So, I want to urge the public to consume clean water from boreholes which were sunk in different communities. In the past, we recently lost people in my constituencies. There are boreholes and when researches are being done by healthcare workers, they say that we ferry water from the streams because they would have spent the whole day in the farm and they should be told that even when coming from the farms, they must take clean water to their fields.

This is quite serious and this might lead to our relatives losing their lives. Hon. Speaker, I want to thank you for giving me this opportunity.

HON. BAJILA: Good afternoon Madam Speaker, thank you so much for the opportunity granted to me to add my voice on this report on the Portfolio Committee visit to hospitals to enquire on our state of readiness and attention to the issue of none communicable diseases. I wish to start by saying I am a Member of the Portfolio Committee on Health and Child Care and I participated in some of the visits.

Some of the issues that we discovered during the tour have been highlighted by earlier speakers. I wish to highlight things that I think are critical and need to be attended to. When we went to Mpilo Hospital, we found some of the machines in place around the hospital but not working. Two issues were reported to us by the management of the hospital. The first issue is the issue of maintenance contracts. It seems that when Government does procurement outside the country for these materials, Government opts for the cheapest offer available.

The cheapest offers available exclude maintenance contract, maintenance contract are critical for this type of machinery which we do not manufacture in the country. What we discovered at Mpilo Hospital was that the machinery in place needs maintenance and for it to be maintained, we do not have local skills and capacity to do the maintenance that is required. We have to go out of the country again to hire people to come and do the maintenance and it becomes expensive. So, I wish to implore this House, that as part of the solution that would be put before the Ministry, on every contract when we procuring machinery from outside the country, specifically healthy related machinery, we must include maintenance contract so that we do not have to go back again to look for fresh contacts for maintenance. In the long run, we need to be able to maintain these machinery locally. So, as part of the health education, we need to have engineers who can fix and maintain these machines.

Furthermore, Madam Speaker, there is an issue of the energy infrastructure in our health institutions. One of the machines that we saw at Mpilo Hospital, which in terms of the report we got, can assist in certain circumstances, particularly to diabetic patients but the challenge is that it needs uninterrupted power supply for it to be able to work. For us to get to a stage where we have uninterrupted power supply, we need to strengthen our energy grids around public hospitals. This means that we may need to have uninterrupted supply of diesel or high-quality supply and availability of solar equipment at these institutions.

One of our key capabilities as Zimbabweans is problem statement. We are very good at identifying problems, describing and we can take forever. This issue needs us to move to the stage of proffering practical and workable solutions.  My colleagues have spoken earlier about the monies that are required for us to achieve and win our fight against non-communicable diseases. All the contributions rest with the fact that what we are asking for is the goodwill of the Minister of Finance. If we do not get it, our people will suffer.

Section 302 of the Constitution is clear that all taxes, levies, donations and so forth that come to Zimbabwe belong to the Consolidated Revenue Fund. Effectively, this means that the sugar tax that is being collected now belong to Consolidated Revenue Fund. There is nothing at this moment that compels the Minister of Finance to use this money to buy the machinery that we are speaking about, nothing at all. Our laws are clear, this money belongs to the Consolidated Revenue Fund but this House is empowered by the same Constitution to create an Act of Parliament that will then compel and create a fund where all these monies get to be directed to.

My proposal therefore, is that this House must push the Minister of Health and Child Care to bring a Bill for the creation of an NCD fund in Zimbabwe. It is only when there is this fund that all these things we have mentioned here can then be funded. Otherwise, the sugar tax as it exists now qualifies for it to be used for any other purpose. The sugar tax that is being collected now can still be directed to CDF. It can still be directed to any other thing that the country sees as long as we do not have an NCD fund created in terms of Section 302 of the Constitution.

To that extent, if we move that way, we will ringfence the sugar tax collection. The benefit therefore is that we will be able to create a stable fund for our long-term fight against NCDs. It will also enable us to scale up some of the existing programmes of procurement or public education because some of these things require public education as my colleagues have spoken earlier. On the other hand, creation of an NCD fund will help us invest in research. Most of these researches that are out there about human health and diseases were done in countries that do not have the same weather and economic conditions as ourselves.

Therefore, the findings of those researches may sometimes be off mark for ourselves. We therefore need an NCD fund so that part of it should go towards research and even research on traditional medicines around the issue of NCDs. If we create an NCD fund, we will also reduce healthcare costs at individual and national level because our people are pumping out a lot of money trying to find this solution or another when they meet NCDs.

Further, an NCD fund is going to create employment. We have got a lot of our young people who have gone to school, have knowledge around these issues and at the present moment, are doing general health work. If we create an NCD fund, we will then have them to be specialised workers in our broader workforce.  Creation of this NCD fund through an NCD Act that needs to be brought here by the Minister of Health and Child Care will also reduce our burden on social security because right now, people who are patients of NCDs have to be subjected or be recipients of one social protection platform or another. Once we have an NCD fund, we are going to reduce our expenditure in the social securities of our country.

To that extent, it is very important that in everything that we do or imagine around the report brought by the Portfolio Committee on Health and Child Care and around our fight against NCDs, we must be cognisant of Section 302 of the Constitution because most of the things that we propose here really depend on the goodwill of the Minister of Finance. We must not continue to appeal to the goodwill of the Minister of Finance or anyone but we must continue to appeal to our laws. Only an Act of Parliament that creates an NCD fund can help us in our fight and even the world out there will be able to see that Zimbabwe is serious about this. We are putting our money in our mouth and our mouth is our healthcare. I thank you.

*HON. KARIMATSENGA-NYAMUPINGA: I would like to thank you for giving me this opportunity to debate this report. I also belong to the health community but let me say most of the things have been spoken about but I might repeat one or two. I realise that so many points have been raised. When we started visiting the hospitals, my heart was so broken because when we entered the hospitals, we realised that the hospitals are dilapidated as they no longer have the facilities that we knew or had before.

The machines that we saw and everything we saw shows that the Ministry of Health needs a lot of funding to be able to replace hospital facilities so that at least we may gain dignity as representatives. As we went around, we found that even the beds were in a poor state. So, the department of technicians also needs funding to maintain and spruce up, even with paint. Before we went to the machines that we were looking for, we noticed that the blankets that were being used by patients can actually worsen the patient.

There are a lot of things that we saw. Even if you try to prevent eyesores, they are a lot of them. There is a lot of work that we need to do so that the people who elect us will be healthy. Health issues are very important and critical, let us not use just words but deep down from the heart, bear in mind that you are representing the people so that they get good healthcare. Everything emanates from this House because we are the ones who passed the budget. We passed the budget yet we realise that they have not been allocated the 15% that was passed according to the Abuja Declaration but  we went ahead and pass the budget. When I saw those things, I became so heart broken and I insulted myself why I went on to pass the budget without getting 15% that is supposed to be allocated.

         There was a reason why it was set aside. That 15% must be put aside for health allocation because it is a very critical component of life. We need to introspect why we pass a budget that has not been given 15% yet we stand here and say the beds are bad, they are not even painted and not spruced up. How can they maintain that when we have not voted for 15% to the Ministry of Health and we also have not ensured that the 15% was disbursed or the little percentage that has been budgeted. I am saying as representatives of the people who also belong to several committees, we need to really be much more serious and work with the Ministry of Health. Although we may criticise them but let us assist them so that we ensure that we correct the situation.

         After seeing all that, what is the aim then after putting those recommendations? How can they be realised when they are not given 15% of the budget allocations according to the Abuja Declaration? Madam Speaker Ma’am, I would like to talk about cancer but we should not also abandon other diseases besides communicable diseases.

I would like to talk about diabetes. You discover a lot of people in our constituencies who have been diagnosed of diabetes. Are they aware of what type of diabetes and what they are supposed to do with that condition? Do they know the diet? If it is about tablets what are they supposed to be doing? We need to pay a lot of attention to that disease because it is increasing.  Everywhere you go you get it. Sometimes I attend funerals where I am supposed to be dishing food and people come requesting for food before we even start dishing. That is a sign that diabetes is increasing.

Dialysis machines are very few in this country. Even if they become available, we need to train a lot of technicians to use the machines so that they may go all the way to the wards as well as districts and that they access them without travelling long distances. After spending a few hours or minutes, they can then go back to their homes. These machines are very few and I hereby request that they be increased.

         The other problem is electricity, power may go off during dialysis then what happens? Even if electricity maybe in short supply, let us ensure that all our hospitals have power, be it solar powered or generator. We may not have electricity for domestic use but let us ensure that hospitals have enough power. If only people could access medication and all the necessary means for diabetes patients, the Ministry of Health in conjunction with the Ministry of Social Welfare, should come up with hampers to give them so that they get adequate food supplies in small quantities. Sometimes they end up not choosing because they do not have access to the correct diet.

         Coming to cancer now, there is need to increase cancer screening everywhere. It should be accessible at nearby health facilities. I am not sure what the training requirements for the screeners are but at least we need to have those technicians or the ones who screen, especially the preliminary ones. They should be available in primary healthcare centres so that they may then refer them to other health facilities. Just like the checking of VIAC related to cervical cancer, there are some signs whereby a doctor can actually recommend that you go for check-up early. If those facilities maybe available because there are so many cancers attacking people nowadays. That is why we are saying traditional medicines are not bad but we realise that the same medication or treatment is being used for the same cancer, be it on the leg or anywhere. We hear that medicine is used for cancer treatment but which type of cancer? There is need for more research and education.

We go back to what was earlier on alluded to by Hon. Khupe where the Hon. Member ended up going to England. She got the correct diagnosis and then the response to treatment started. We need to have all those cancer screening machines. Same applies to traditional medicines, let us have them in specific cancers.  This is where we get it wrong; yes, we use traditional medicines and sometimes they are stopped from seeking medical treatment.  By the time they resort to go to hospitals, it will be too late.  Sometimes, when you go closer to that person, you will get an odour emanating from that cancer.  So, there is need for patients to seek treatment early and diagnosed.  I think people need awareness. We were discussing with Hon. Dr. Khupe this afternoon and we were saying that each Hon. Member should come up with an awareness pamphlet or booklet so that they start talking about cancer before they delve into the agenda of the day so that at least people may be educated on it.

         In hospitals, we realise that men do not rush to go and get screened.  Most of the times it becomes too late.  They avoid being pressed on their private parts.  Go ahead and get them examined much earlier.  Where I come from, there is a patient who was attended to very late.  Now they are given various instructions and asked to stick to a certain diet so that the patient can respond to cancer treatment.  I encourage you all Hon. Members to seek screening of cancer earlier because this is not a disease that affects women only but men as well.  So, men mostly are diagnosed late because they avoid examination.  If only as an august House we can agree, be it in all the Committees that we sit in, may we reduce expenditure…

         THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER (HON. TSITSI ZHOU): Order, order! You are left with five minutes Hon. Nyamupinga.

         *HON. KARIMATSENGA-NYAMUPINGA: Let us cut all the costs and re-direct those funds to the Ministry of Health.  If we were to do that for two years and cut Government expenditure and direct all those funds to the Ministry of Health, there will be improvement.  Any healthy person will go to work and work hard. This will also contribute to the improvement of the economy of the country because of improved health. 

         Let me wind up by saying that we wish to see the radiotherapy machines that were procured by Government.  I would like to thank the President and the Ministry, may the machines be connected much earlier because we have realised that some of the machines are bought but they are not connected.  This will go a long way in improving the health of our country.  I thank you.

         *HON. NYABANI: Thank you Madam Speaker Ma’am.  I would like to add a few words to the report after their tour to various hospitals and the recommendations they are putting across.  Looking at the death rate in this country, 36% die because of non-communicable diseases, such as cancer.  It is a very high figure per year but this can be prevented.  Non-communicable diseases are prevalent in developing countries because mostly some of them drink a lot of beer.  Like I always say, beer is not meant for people without money.  It is not meant to solve problems.  Beer must be consumed in very small quantities so as cigarettes not chain smoking.  When it comes to eating, they just eat without even washing their hands because they are very hungry.  That contributes to these diseases that lead to unfortunate death.

         I saw the health report that was brought into this House.  I notice that hospitals do not have technicians or experts in certain areas.  Where I come from in Rushinga, even if they may not have come to Rushinga and if that is the situation, we are left with very few skilled personnel in hospitals because they have sought greener pastures.  I urge Government to increase number of training facilities for doctors as well as nurses so that we have many health workers.  At least people may get attended to quickly when they go to seek treatment.

         The other thing is that a fund must be set up for some of these diseases.  For most of us who stay in rural areas, we are unable to pay for treatment.  Some may go to hospitals; they are told they cannot be treated because they do not have money.  I urge for setting up of a fund, through the Social Welfare to be paid for through the Social Welfare, in order for them to access treatment.  Sometimes they are told that they cannot be treated for free because they do not have a letter from the Social Welfare.

         I would also like to thank the President for BVU as well as YBU. Where I come from in Rushinga, we receive very little rains as we grew up, we would consume okra in the morning, afternoon as well as evening. That okra will be consumed from January to December. So, the President is saying people should be able to consume greens and is also delivering vegetables as well as fish to ensure that people get nutritious food. Sometimes the diet also contributes to some of these health complications. May this august House also look closely that before the whites colonised Africa, how were people surviving? These days people are running to talk about machinery as well as doctors yet we have our traditional methods of surviving using traditional medicines.

I was talking about somebody bitten by a snake, they are treated traditionally at that spot and they recover immediately. These days we are regarding those as useless because they are done by blacks but people used to survive on traditional medicines. We make up the laws, we need to revisit the traditional way of living including medication. If you go to China, you will get traditional medicine pharmacies as well as exotic medicines.

So, I encourage this august House as well as the Minister to ensure that there is a lot of research that takes place with regards to traditional medicines. Cancer treatment can be available but sometimes because of poor research, it is condemned as not effective. I used to be given traditional medicines, there were no hospitals in 1973 up to 1980 because of the war. We used to survive on traditional medicines, so why can we not do it again today? Some of those things we are crying for, there are some people who might be able to cure them. I thank you.

HON. KANGAUSARU: Thank you Madam Speaker. I stand before you to address an issue of paramount importance to the health and well-being of the people of Zimbabwe. The growing burden of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs), with particular emphasis on cancer, this issue, though it is overshadowed by more immediate health crises is quietly yet profoundly affecting our population and our health system.

The Portfolio Committee on Heath and Child Care has presented its report on this critical topic but I believe the conversation needs to move beyond the statistics into action. Specifically, how we can collectively reframe approach to combating the disease and alleviate the devastating effects they have on individuals, families and communities?

The numbers are stark. It is estimated that over 40% of death in Zimbabwe are attributed to NCDs, with cancer being one of the leading causes. However, these numbers represent more than just abstract data, they represent individuals, mothers, fathers, children and grandparents whose lives have been cut short or drastically altered due to diseases that are, in many cases, preventable or manageable with the right approach.

Here lies the crux of my argument, NCDs particularly cancer, are not just a health issue, they are a social issue, a developmental issue and yes, a moral issue. Every day that we delay taking decisive action to address the root causes of NCDs, such as poor diet, lack of physical activity, tobacco use and inadequate access to early diagnosis and treatment, we are failing not only to fulfil our constitutional duty to protect the health of our citizens but we are also failing our moral obligation to protect the future of our nations.

I would like to suggest, with all due respect, that we must not view NCDs solely through the lens of healthcare. Rather, we must view them as a crisis that requires multi-sectoral collaboration. Addressing NCDs requires us to integrate efforts from sectors such as agriculture, education, urban planning and even entertainment. For instance, promoting health lifestyles should begin in schools, with nutrition education embedded into the curriculum. Our agricultural policies should incentivise the production of healthy, nutritious foods and urban planning must prioritise spaces that encourage physical activity such as sparks and safe walkaways.

Furthermore, we must treat the issue of cancer with the seriousness it deserves. Cancer patients often face financial run and emotional strain, not only because of the disease itself but also due to lack of affordable treatment options. I am proposing Madam Speaker, that we urgently need to invest in the cancer screening and diagnostic facilities across the country, particularly in rural areas where cancer detection is often delayed or missed entirely.

To that end, the Government must actively encourage public -private partnerships to expand access to cancer treatment, and there should be a strong emphasis on universal health coverage for NCDs, including cancer. It is unacceptable that a person’s ability to access life saving treatment should be determined by their socio-economic status. We need policies that level the playing field and give all citizens equal access to healthcare.

Additionally, we must tackle the stigma associated with NCDs. Cancer in particular, is often shrouded in secrecy and fear. This stigma leads to late-stage diagnosis and poor health outcomes. We must, as a Parliament, spearhead a national campaign to raise awareness, remove misconceptions, and support those living with NCDS through education and open dialogue.

Madam Speaker, the report is a step in the right direction. However, it is only a starting point. We must now shift our focus from merely identifying the problem to developing concrete solutions that involve all of society. Together, we can build a healthier Zimbabwe, a Zimbabwe where the fight against NCDs, including cancer in particular, is not left to individuals alone but a national effort in involving Government, the private sector and the community at large.

Madam Speaker, in conclusion, let this motion serve as a call to action. Let us not wait until the situation becomes even more dire. Let us work together to ensure that the burden of NCDs does not stifle the potential of our nation’s future. Let us invest in prevention, early detection, treatment and education so that Zimbabwe can rise to meet the challenge of non-communicable diseases head-on, with courage and a shared sense of responsibility. I so submit Madam Speaker.

THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER (HON. MAUNGANIDZE):  Thank you Honourable. Hon. Members, you are encouraged to concentrate when you are in Parliament. Thank you.

HON. KAMBUZUMA:  Madam Speaker, I move that debate do now adjourn.

HON. C. MOYO:   I second.

Motion put and agreed to.  

Debate to resume:  Wednesday, 19^th February, 2024.

MOTION

BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE

HON. KAMBUZUMA:  Madam Speaker, I move that Order of the Day, Number 7 be stood over until Order of the Day Number 8 has been disposed of.

HON. NYANDORO:  I second.

Motion put and agreed to.

MOTION

ESTABLISHMENT OF A DEDICATED FRAMEWORK TO ENSURE GOVERNMENT TENDERS ARE RESERVED FOR YOUTH LED BUSINESS ENTERPRISES

Eighth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on promotion of youth economic empowerment and entrepreneurial growth.

Question again proposed.

HON. MASVISVI:  Thank you Madam Speaker for giving me time to debate on the Youths Empowerment and Entrepreneurship Development. Zimbabwe’s youth constitute over 60% of the population yet they face high unemployment, limited access to capital and lack of business opportunities. If we fail to act, we risk a future of economic stagnation, social unrest and continued brain drain.

Madam Speaker, the current state of youth unemployment and entrepreneurship in our country exceeds 60%. This has led to increased poverty and crime. Many young people, including university graduates are forced into the informal sector where they face low earnings and lack of job security. The youths, upon leaving school and tertiary institutes are unable to secure employment and neither can they be self-employed. The current education system does not adequately prepare youths for entrepreneurship or self-employment. Even those with viable business ideas, limited access to finance inhibits these young entrepreneurs from starting and scaling businesses.

Madam Speaker, the question now is, what can we do to empower youth and encourage entrepreneurship?  There are several initiatives that can be put in place and these include improving access to finance for young entrepreneurs through establishment of National Youth Entrepreneurship Fund to provide low interest loans and grants for youth led start-up businesses.  We need to strengthen the Empower Bank and other financial institutions to make capital more accessible.

Madam Speaker, education reform is key. The curriculum has to be revised to focus on entrepreneurship, financial literacy and digital skills that will equip the youth relevant skills and knowledge to thrive in the business world. School based entrepreneurship programmes must be introduced to schools to encourage innovation from young age. There is need to expand vocational training centres and create apprenticeship programmes in key industries.

Madam Speaker, we must create a supportive business environment by reducing bureaucratic barriers and make it easier for young people to register and operate businesses. In addition, business incubators and mentorship programmes should be established in every province. We cannot undermine the importance of technology in today’s business world. There is need to invest in digital and technological innovation through developing technology hubs and innovation to support information technology driven entrepreneurship and promoting e-commerce and digital marketing training to help young business compete in a global market.

Madam Speaker, there is need to expand opportunities for youths in agriculture and manufacturing through providing land and resources to encourage young farmers to engage in commercial farming. Also, creation of special economic zones where youth-led manufacturing business can thrive. I urge Parliament on what we should do as parliamentarians to:

• Pass legislation to establish a National Youth Economic Empowerment Strategy;
• Allocate budgetary support for youth development initiatives;
• Provide tax incentives for businesses that mentor or employ young people; and
• Encourage public-private-partnerships to fund youth entrepreneurship programmes.

As we discuss youth empowerment and entrepreneurship, we cannot ignore the growing crisis of drug and substance abuse among our young people. Substance abuse is not just a social issue. It is an economic threat that undermines the very foundation of vision 2030. We must strengthen rehabilitation programmes like skills training and mental health support to help affected young people reclaim their potential.

Madam Speaker, youth empowerment and entrepreneurship are critical to Zimbabwe’s economic transformation under Vision 2030. The national blueprint prioritises equipping young people with practical skills to ensure they are ready for the evolving job market. Through NDS1 and Public-Private-Partnerships, we can foster job creation while entrepreneurship can be supported through funding mechanisms and innovation hubs. Let us ensure that policies and resources are directed towards making vision 2030 a reality for our young people.

Madam Speaker, youth empowerment is not an option. It is a necessity. By creating jobs, providing financial support and fostering innovation, we can unlock the economic potential of Zimbabwe’s young people. By prioritising youth empowerment and entrepreneurship, Zimbabwe can drive economic recovery and build a self-reliant future.  I thank you.

         HON. MUKOMBERI: Thank you very much Madam Speaker Ma’am for this opportunity to allow me to add my voice also on the motion on youth empowerment.  Madam Speaker Ma’am, youth empowerment is a very pertinent topic to talk about, especially when we advocate for the allocation of at least 30% of tenders to youths. That is actually a very crucial stance as an entrepreneurial empowerment tool. 

         Hon. Speaker, allow me to elucidate on a number of reasons why it is very crucial to support youth empowerment through allowing them to participate in tenderpreneurship, this allows job creation.  Job creation in the sense that if we empower youth entrepreneurs through tender allocation, this can lead to job creation which actually reduces unemployment in Zimbabwe, especially for the young generation. 

         Madam Speaker Ma’am, poverty reduction is also a result of youth employment by providing economic opportunities, we are actually reducing poverty among youths, hence contributing resultantly on overall poverty reduction in Zimbabwe.  If we reduce poverty to our youthful generation, Madam Speaker; it implies that as the youths constitute over 60% of population, it means the majority of the population is our youth.  So, trying to reduce poverty in that category of population, we have actually reduced poverty to the majority of Zimbabweans.

         Madam Speaker Ma’am, empowering youths is something that also drives economic growth. Youth led businesses can contribute immensely to economic growth, innovation and diversification, ultimately this benefits the entire economy as we march towards vision 2030 to achieve an upper-middle income economy as a holistic approach, taking all the generations in the economic drive. 

         Actually, the empowerment of youths supports inclusivity of youths in economic activities.  As we empower youths, they are going to have a stake in the economy and also in the decision-making processes.  Having a stake in sharing the economic cake or the national cake is actually in support of the intergenerational equity principle of public finance management.   If you go to Public Finance Management Act, Section 6 (i), paragraph (e), which states that the Minister in managing public finances, must ensure that financial management is conducted in a way that is fair and equitable across generations.   That is the elderly generations have participated in economic activities from long back.  So, we have to also allow the youthful generations to also participate such that we are close or minimise the gene core efficiency which actually measures inequity in resource allocation in the economy. 

         Also, allocating a certain percentage for youths to grab in terms of tenders actually enables stability and security. That will be actually offering economic opportunities, tender allocation that can help reduce youths’ restlessness, thus promoting stability and security in Zimbabwean youths. 

         By doing this, the youths will be positive about the future because they are also given the chance to demonstrate their capabilities in terms of entrepreneurial activities.  Empowerment of youths also supports innovation.  It is true Madam Speaker that youth led businesses can drive innovation, introducing new products, services, business models that can transform industries.  This is because we will be actually bringing in new minds, new ideas into our economic activities as a nation. 

         Also, this allows mentorship of our youths as they are future leaders.  If we allow youths to also participate in tenders, this will allow established businesses to mentor youths led enterprises, thereby sharing expertise as well as best practices that will be carried forward to future years by the youths.

         It is very pertinent to note that the empowerment of youths also improves skills development for the whole economy at large because as I mentioned earlier, youths constitute a greater percentage of the national population.  This means at large we will have developed skills to the majority.  Tender allocation can also facilitate skills development amongst youths, enhancing their entrepreneurial and business management capabilities. 

         Apart from that Madam Speaker, it is very pertinent that we come up with a legislation that allows, as you indicated when you moved this motion, a certain percentage allocated to the youths.  This will enable policy implementation in regulatory framework in terms of actually coming up with a specified piece of legislation that will see the Government having a greater commitment to implementing policy that promote youths empowerment and youths entrepreneurship as we march towards achievement of vision 2030.         Madam Speaker Ma’am, allow me to end here and accept my humble submission in support of youths empowerment.  I thank you very much.

         HON. S. DUBE: Greetings Madam Speaker Ma’am, I would like to thank you for affording me this opportunity to support the motion moved by Hon. Maunganidze, seconded by Hon. Stanley Sakupwanya, calling the establishment of a dedicated and youth led framework that reserves 30% of Government tenders for youths led enterprises recently.  This is not just about numbers or policies on paper.  This is about real change, real opportunities and real empowerment for Zimbabwe’s youths.

         Madam Speaker Ma’am, we often talk about the future belonging to the youths but how can they be the future if they are not afforded opportunities today?  Zimbabwe’s young people make up over 60% of our population, yet they remain on the peripheral of economic activities.  The statistics do not lie, youth unemployment sits at over 50% according to the ZimStats.  It is not for lack of effort or ambition, our youths are brilliant, innovative and hard working.  They are locked out of the system.  Some have even fallen into the pit due to the scourge of mental health.  Let us be frank, one of the biggest hurdles facing young entrepreneurs is access to Government contracts. Many youths led businesses are not even being considered in the public procurement space.  We have Empowerment Bank, the National Venture Capital Company of Zimbabwe and other financing institutions. Let us ask ourselves, how many young people actually access these funds?  The requirements are too stringent.  Some processes are too complicated and in the end, only a handful benefit while the rest remain excluded from meaningful participation in the economy.

         Madam Speaker Ma’am, our call as raised by Honourable Maunganidze, for the 30% procurement reservation for youth led businesses is not a request or favour, it is a genuine request for what is inherently ours under the Constitution. Section 20 of the Zimbabwe Constitution mandates the Government to take reasonable measures to ensure that young people are afforded opportunities for employment and empowerment.

         This is not a new idea.  The 2025 Budget Strategy Paper already recognises the need for Government intervention to promote the youth entrepreneurship.  We must invest in high growth sectors such as the digital economy, agriculture and mining where young people have already proven their capabilities.  Across the world, nations that have empowered their youths are thriving economically, allowing youths to achieve their fullest potential, both personally and in business.  Why should Zimbabwe be any different? 

This motion, is part of a bigger picture.  Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) aides which promote decent work and economic growth, explicitly cause for policies that encourage young participation.  The African Union’s Agenda 2063 and SADC’s economy vision also emphasise the importance of youth empowerment.

         This is about real lives, real business and real jobs.  Awarding 30% of Government tenders to young led businesses, we create employment opportunities, boost innovation, support and formalise youth enterprises.  Too many young entrepreneurs are stuck either in the formal or informal sector, hustling to make ends meet, yet they have the skills, the drive and the ambition to sow into the greater heights.

         Madam Speaker Ma’am, we urge this august House to help in creating a strategy so that we provide capacity building programmes in financial literacy, business management and tendering processes because winning a tender is one thing, but successfully delivering on  it is another.

Institutions such as Empower Bank, Zimbabwe Youths Council, Youth Led Businesses, Organisations and the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Corporation to name just a few, must be strengthened to provide mentorship, financing and support.

         The aim is to enable an environment where young people compete, innovate and contribute meaningfully to the economy.  Zimbabwe’s vision for an upper-middle income society by 2030 will not be achieved if we fail to empower the majority demographic and our youth. To ensure this is not just another policy and looks good on paper. I propose an innovative mentoring and evaluation framework to track compliance and measure the economic impact of the opportunity.

         In conclusion, this opportunity is about the future of Zimbabwe by investing youth led enterprises. We are investing in innovation, economic growth and national prosperity.  This initiative allies with constitutional amendments, vision 2030, NDS1, the African Youth Charter Agenda 2063 and SADC’s Development Framework.  I thank you.

         ^*HON. MAPIKI: Thank you Madam Speaker for the opportunity that you have granted me to also add my voice onto this motion which was raised.  The issues that they raised, that the button should be passed to the youth, I wholly support it. 

         Madam Speaker, I would want to start with the issue of empowerment as regards the youth. It starts with empowering their minds.  If it were in the religious terms, we would be using terms like circumcision and being baptised before you get there. 

         In other countries, they first empower the brain.  If you go to the North Korea, they learn the Dutch philosophy. If you go to Iran, there is the Islamic Cultural Institute where the children’s brains are enlightened or educated for them to know where they come from and where they are going.   It is the knowledge that is given to the youth before they are given this leadership, they should know about defending their country.

The rest of the things that I am going to talk about can only be achieved if a person knows where they come from and where they are going. In our culture, as we were growing up, my grandfather taught us about the importance of the Mapiki Clan before he started teaching us anything else.  Thereafter, he taught us about the area where we were raised in, the country where we were raised in so that we then know how to defend our territory.  That for one to become a village head or a Chief should know about the Mapiki dynasty or tribe. He also spoke about the need for the youth to be empowered in skills. 

I thank His Excellency the President, Dr. E. D. Mnangagwa for skills empowerment through vocational training centres where people learn practical subjects.  I believe that we should talk about practical subjects and educate them on how best they can go forward. We should also talk about the need for them to access funding from the bank.

If you ask the majority of them, they talk about lack of funding and that employment is difficult to come up with. I am in agreement; it is difficult to get employment but they should know that if they know what they require, they will discover that jobs are not difficult to get.

I want to talk about jobs that have become available in Binga. They can grow certain trees that are used as herbs such as Moringa.  Binga is a drought prone area and the Moringa leaves can be dried up and we grind them and pack them into 50g sachets and sell them.  We can also mix them with stock feed as they work as an antibiotic for cattle.

If this antibiotic is given to cattle and goats, there will not be any need for inoculating the livestock often.  So, there is work for the youth in Binga.  What they are told by Standards Association of Zimbabwe is that, when you think of grinding such Moringa leaves, they would come and teach you on how to weigh and brand the products.  They will teach you also on labelling indicating the ingredients contained in the Moringa pack.  ZimTrade would then talk about exporting such products as Moringa. 

The roots, the leaves, the bucks of that tree can be used to treat acids or people who have blotted stomachs. It also assists in the blood circulation and those men that are cold blooded can become hot in bed after taking moringa.  So, the youths in Binga can gainfully employ themselves in that regard. A lot of goods can easily be accessed in Harare. Thousands of vegetables are being thrown away.  Youths can be gainfully employed through these cabbages and then get very large plastic bags and sun dry them…

         *THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER:  Hon. Mapiki, when debating, please confine yourself to the principal of the motion. 

         *HON. MAPIKI:  In the motion that we read, there was talk about entrepreneurship and this is what I am talking about.  If you read the motion, that is the key issue. If I have gone astray, it is possible as a human being but on that particular issue, he is talking about entrepreneurship which urges people to use their hands practically, this is what I am talking about – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – Madam Speaker, may I be protected? There are some unruly Members of Parliament who are after me. 

         Madam Speaker, let me go back to the issue of the businesses I have spoken about.  If you go to Mbare at Siyaso, a lot of the youths are employed and the same applies to those in Glen View.  They are making beds and such other furniture items. In Zimbabwe, under the purview of the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises, there is a law that says 25% should be for the local area, for example, the 25% of the tenders that are being floated in Shamva for the development should be given to the youths that are in that particular area. We thank you for that allocation.  When the framework was designed, they came up with such figures later on.  Tenders can be given out but our youths should be taught self-skills, practical skills and meet certain standards. Therefore, this follows that as the Government advertises these tenders, they are awarded to people that have the necessary requisite skills that can match the standard. 

         The youths also complain about the issue of the tenders. I urge the Small to Medium Enterprises Ministry to bring to the youths, especially in vocational training centres.  We have an agreement that also allows the youths access to machines so that they become self-sustaining once they receive such tenders.  I am grateful for that and the motion that was raised by the youths on the issue of banking sector. I am glad we now have the Youth Bank and such other things.  What is now required is for the youths to be aware of what exactly they would want to do and the proposals that are acceptable by the banks. 

         Madam Speaker Ma’am, what is also interesting about the entrepreneurship, we should revive the COMESA regulation that also includes countries like Zimbabwe and Zambia such that those that are involved in cross border trading are also empowered.  They should be given simplified regime trade forms that can be used by the youths, both male and female and they can be able to import goods that are not more than USD500.  So there is need for collaboration between Zimbabwe and Zambia so that there be syndicates and that Zimbabwean youths, South African youths and Zambian youths can have wholesales in Zimbabwe. Zambia can then exchange views in terms of how they can trade so that they cannot wait for formal employment but they will be employers in their own right.  I thank you Madam Speaker Ma’am.

         HON. KAMBUZUMA: Madam Speaker, I move that the debate do now adjourn.

         HON. NYANDORO: I second.

         Motion put and agreed to.

         Debate to resume: Wednesday, 19^th February, 2025.

MOTION

BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE

         HON. KAMBUZUMA:  I move that Orders of the Day, Numbers 9 to 11 be stood over until Order of the Day, Number 12 on today’s Order Paper has been disposed of.

         HON. NYANDORO:  I second.

         Motion put and agreed to.

MOTION

LEGISLATION TO PROTECT INDIGENOUS

HERBAL TREES

          HON. P. ZHOU: Madam Speaker, I move the motion standing in my name that this House: -

MINDFUL that Zimbabwe is endowed with a variety of plants with medicinal properties hence the need to protect them from want on exploitation;

AWARE of the ever-increasing demand for these herbal resources domestically and internationally;

ALSO AWARE that our indigenous heritage and valuable medicinal knowledge are under threat of extinction, a situation which compromises the authenticity and efficacy on traditional remedies:

NOW, THEREFORE, calls upon the Ministry of Environment, Climate and Wildlife to—

• come up with legislation to protect indigenous herbal trees, especially those with medicinal properties;
• designate specific areas as herbal conservation zones and promote sustainable harvesting of such trees as a way to minimise environmental impact and ensure long-term viability of herbal trees and plants;
• encourage cultivation of herbal trees to meet the soaring demand while reducing pressure on the natural ecosystems;
• preserve traditional knowledge on herbal remedies through intellectual property rights mechanisms;
• educate the public about the importance of preserving Zimbabwe’s herbal heritage and the repercussions of unsustainable

    HON. MAKOPE:  I second.

             HON. P. ZHOU:  Thank you very much Madam Speaker Ma’am for giving me the opportunity to move my motion on conservation of plants with medicinal properties in the country.             Zimbabwe is home to a rich variety of plants that possess medicinal properties and have been in use over a very long period of time spanning into centuries.   Indigenous communities across the country have utilised these plants for their healing abilities.  Such notable plants include the Sausage Tree/Kigelia African (Mumvee) also known as Umvebe in Ndebele.  It has many traditional uses including treating skin conditions like eczema, fungal infections as well as more serious diseases like leprosy, syphilis and skin cancer, diabetes, cardiac and nutritional disorders (Iwu 2014, Matowa Etal 2020). Research by Neuwinger (2000) shows that these tree’s herbal products are also used traditionally to treat erectile dysfunction in men and other sexual complaints.  Its properties are also used to tone and firm the bust and improve skin firmness and elasticity, especially by women to improve their breast. Boys and men also use it to increase the length and thickness of their manhood.

The Moringa tree, another good example of a tree with medicinal qualities is the Moringa, generally referred to as Moringa in Shona also and Umoringa in Ndebele, is primarily known for its many benefits. I will try to say a few but it has many. For example, high nutritional value, immunity booster, reducing inflammation, enhancing skin health, brain booster, balances blood sugar, supports digestion, anti-ulcer, anti-tumour – meaning it can work on cancer, reduces wrinkles, contains vitamin A, B, C, E and K and it is also an accelerator of weight loss for those who want to lose weight. The Moringa tree has an unending least of benefits, both for human beings and for livestock. Some local communities call it miracle tree or a wonder tree.

The other one is a shrub called the Devil’s Claw (Hypagophytum procumbens) used to treat arthritis, muscle pain and back pains. This plant is common know as chifumuro in Shona and unyawo-lwengwenya in Ndebele. The plant is found in the dry sandy soils of Matebeleland and Southern parts of Zimbabwe.

Another is the Baobab tree (Adansonia digitata) which is high in nutritional. It treats diarrhoea, malaria and fever as well as boosts immune systems. The plant is also found in hot dry regions such as Matebeland, Masvingo and along the Zambezi River. To name others is the wild ginger also known as ihluli in Ndebele, which is used to treat most of the respiratory conditions and headache. The plants are commonly found in the most woodlands and forests, hence the eastern highlands.

The Aloe Vera, we know it as gavakava in Shona. It is used as an anti-inflammatory compound. The plant can be found in both arid and semi-arid regions such as Matebeleland and Masvingo. We have the other one which is called Mugwort commonly known as mufandichimuka in Shona and is primarily used for treating digestive problems, menstrual pain and as an anti-parasitic. The plant is found in high altitudes such as the Eastern highlands and around Harare. In Harare, research has been carried out, especially by Harare institute of Technology (HIT). It has carried out scientific research on indigenous medicinal plants in Zimbabwe as part of the SADC and the German Development Cooperation (GDC). HIT found out that, we have 93 species which are used to treat human diseases in South Central African, from 41 plant species. These can treat 18 diseases. Most of the diseases treated by these 93 plants are gastrointestinal disorders, sexual transmitted infections, cold, cough, sore throats and gynaecological problems. The research alludes to the fact that 82% of the plants tested for toxicity were found to be non-toxic. That is non – poisonous.

Furthermore, traditional healers, or herbalists in Zimbabwe mostly use leaves, seed, steams, buck or roots from these plants to treat symptoms of diseases. The Ministry of Environment, Climate and Wildlife with support from the Global Environment Facility implemented a medicinal plant project, whose overall objective was to promote the conservation, sustainable use and cultivation for endangered medicinal plants in Zimbabwe.  They found out that medicinal plants have been used by community groups without evidence of the efficacy. The University of Zimbabwe School of Pharmacy has confirmed that the majority of these plants used as medicines do indeed have medicinal properties.

What remains to be done is a thorough research of dosages and other properties. The University of Zimbabwe School of Pharmacy came up with some important recommendations as follows; results of the tests for efficacy of the medicinal plants should be packaged and communicated to the community groups so that the latter can focus their conservation efforts on those plants that will yield high medicinal benefits.

Furthermore, laboratory test has been carried out to establish which plants deserve further attention towards the development of medicines that meet regional and international standards, so that we can also package our herbs like what China does. Government of Zimbabwe needs to either invest in this further test or identify farming sources to continue with this work. In furthering this process of enquiry, care should be taken to protect the intellectual property rights of producer communities.

The Ministry of Environment, Climate and Wildlife in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare and justice should conclude the legislative processes aimed at institutionalising and formalising traditional medicine as an alternative or parallel system in Zimbabwe.

It is without a doubt that in recent years the existence of medicinal plants in Zimbabwe is under a serious threat from several factors which affects both their abundancy and biodiversity. These key threats include: -

• deforestation and habitat loss: forest, woodlands and savannahs where medicinal plants thrive are being cleared en masse to pave way for the expansion of agriculture, urbanisation and infrastructural development,
• overharvesting due to the ever-increasing demand for traditional medicine and herbal remedies locally and abroad. For example, mumvee, right now if you go to the markets, almost everyone has mumvee fruits, it is all over. So, the way it is harvested now becomes a problem. You use everything on mumvee, the buck, the twigs, the leaves, the stem the roots and the fruits. So, there can be unsustainable harvesting techniques such as uprooting the entire plants among others or cutting down the whole tree;
• climate change and its impacts are causing unprecedented effects on the ecosystems where these plants grow. Extreme weather events such as droughts are making it difficult for species like Devils Claw and Baobab to regenerate naturally. On average, Zimbabwe loses approximately one million hectares of forests every year. The droughts that have escalated both in severity and frequency in Zimbabwe exacerbate the risk of veld fires. Mashonaland West province is the most affected in the country.
• Invasive species spread outcompeting native medicinal plants for resources critical for plant survival such as sunlight, water and nutrients. Species like Wild Sage (Lantana Camara) or rukato in Shona and Ubobo in Ndebele, regardless of its medicinal uses, it can also become invasive, threatening local ecosystems.
• Unsustainable mining activities rampant in Zimbabwe’s growing mining sector, leads to environmental degradation. Habitats are being destroyed and ecosystems polluted particularly in areas where plants like moringa and baobab are found.
• Lack pf conservation and sustainable utilisation awareness amongst many Zimbabwe’s rural communities who depend on medicinal plants for healthcare remain perennial cause of overuse and habitat destruction.

Recommendations

• To conserve and preserve medicinal plants, the bodied indigenous knowledge and heritage, a combination of efforts from local communities, government private sector an environmental organisations at large is crucial.
• Despite the existence of several legal and policy instruments that are aimed at conserving and preserving Zimbabwe’s medicinal plants such as the Environmental Management Act (Chapter 20:27), Parks and Wildlife Act (Chapter 20:14(, Forest Act (Chapter 19:05), as well as Traditional Medical Practitioners Act (Chapter 27:14), National Environmental Policy and Strategy, National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan, and various international Conventions, there are significant gaps that need to be closed. The gaps include inconsistent and weak enforcement of laws and regulation; lack of awareness and education for local communities; insufficient data on critical aspects as medicinal plants populations; gaps in traditional knowledge protection and preservation; inadequate resources mainly financial to implement effective conservation programmes; limited synergy and collaboration between traditional and scientific communities with the later under valuing and ignoring traditional knowledge in formal conservation efforts; climate change adaptation gaps particularly targeted at medicinal trees; and insufficient regulation of commercial harvesting. The Ministry of Environment, Climate and Wildlife can take a lead in developing and implementing the following key strategies and recommendations: -
• Come up with robust legislation that protect native herbal trees placing emphasis on those plants with medicinal properties. In some cases, there is need to strengthen the enforcement of existing laws with more resources and personnel. Designate, expand and increase herbal conservation zones and promote sustainable harvesting of the herbal plants and the medicinal trees.
• Improve regulation of commercial harvesting and trade.
• Increase research and data management on vulnerable medicinal plants.
• Preserve traditional knowledge on herbal remedies through patenting intellectual property rights mechanisms.
• Enhance collaboration between traditional healers and scientific researchers.
• Developing climate resilient strategies for the conservation of medicinal plants.
• Educate the public, both urban and rural communities on the importance of preserving Zimbabwe’s herbal heritage, and the conservation of medicinal trees emphasising on the consequences of unsustainable utilisation of the same resources.

The Bible mentions the use of trees and herbs for healing in

Ezekiel 47:12 and Revelation 22:1-2. Ezekiel 47:12 says “Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing. Every tree bearing fruit shall grow on the strand, in the rivers thereof on each side. Its fruit will be for food, and its leaf for healing”.  God gave us the Garden of Eden and all the flora in it. Therefore, all of us to use in a sustainable manner. I thank you.

         HON. MAKOPE: Thank you Madam Speaker for giving me this opportunity to second the motion moved by Hon. P. Zhou. This motion comes at the right time when America has just withdrawn its support through USAID and to me, it is a wake up call for us as a nation. According to Ester Boserup, necessity is the mother of invention. So, this is an opportunity for us as a nation to craft the policies, initiate and even to be proactive and making sure that we close the gap that has been left by those who used to support us in that field.

         If I look at Zimbabwe as one of the African nations, Zimbabwe is a religious nation, the greater population of Zimbabweans being Christians but we have our original religion which is the African Traditional Religion (ATR), which is the basis of our medicinal value addition or the healthcare at our traditional set up. As we speak, the traditional leadership should be conscientised on the importance of these medicinal herbs which we have locally.

         I have been checking some of the researches which have been made in the recent past. According to Maroyi Alfred, a total of 93 medicinal plant species, representing 41 families are used in South Central Africa, Zimbabwe included. These plant species are used to treat 18 diseases and disorder categories, with the highest number of species used to treat gastro and sexual transmitted diseases. This means our local medicines or herbs are very important and have been used by our ancestors in our culture.

         Drummond also in 1985, outlined that more than 5 000 plants species grown in Zimbabwe, about 10% of these have medicinal properties and are used as traditional medicines. These researches clearly outline that it is us who should initiate the programmes to make sure that the medicinal herbs are used by our people.

         Let me just check some of the problems or challenges which we are facing in appreciating these medicinal herbs in Zimbabwe. I have already indicated that religion, in particularly Christianity, there are some sections or sectors which are not appreciating that area of healthcare. We also have the colonisation of the mind. I just want to talk briefly about how our minds are being colonised to the extent that we shun these herbs. If you look at that field or that sector it has been treated as dark, in fact Africa has always been treated as a dark continent by those who used to colonise us. Everything that is coming from an African has been treated as satanic, dark or given a derogatory name that as the current generation, we end up shunning these medicinal herbs.

         Madam Speaker Ma’am, I have been checking on some of the names that have been given to some of our medicine or even fruits which we used to depend on traditionally. We have matamba, because there are no matamba in Europe, they call them monkey oranges. As long as they become monkey food, definitely us as Africans or Zimbabweans, we end up shunning it. That is a challenge to us. If you look at matohwe, generally they are some medicinal values but they are called snot apple, which refers to mucus. Again that name is not in line with our local languages which should motivate or encourage the people to take up these medicines.

         There is an international board for botanics which has already voted to rename more than 200 species of these, including fungi, the plants as well as algae so that people can appreciate the species or these herbs which are used for medicines. If you look at some of these names in South Africa, the majority of them  have a word kaffir and kaffir is an Arabic name or Arabic word which is used as a racial slave against the black people.  To me this colonisation of the mind is one of the challenges which we have that can lead us to shunning our local resources, our local medicines which we should use. Madam Speaker Ma’am, if even you look at the practitioners who are in that field, instead of calling them doctors because those are professionals, we call them witch doctors. Being witches is now associated with people who are killing or satanic which is a derogatory name. We should come out from that point of view in trying to find a policy framework that can actually accommodate the local medicines as well as the practitioners.

I also looked at the structure of these practitioners. We used to have people who have a lot of passion in this field, the likes of Prof Chavhunduka and their Board of ZINATHA but that social structure is no longer existing in our society probably because of some of those threats and challenges that I have already alluded to. Generally, if we reactivate that structure, even starting with the National Board of Directors to the village level of the people who are actually focusing on the medicinal herbs, I think that can actually alleviate some of the issues which can assist us in that particular area.

         We have some low hanging fruits which we can take advantage of. Currently our President, His Excellency, Dr. E.D. Mnangagwa has already initiated a robust programme of village business units which involve the establishment of a garden. I think in that particular garden is where we can establish a corner or a section with the herbs or a herbal section. Again, we need to conscientise our villagers on the importance of these herbs over those medicines that we get from our hospitals.  To me it is an advantage for us to use those gardens that have already been established.

         Madam Speaker, let me take this opportunity to allude to Education 5.0, a programme that has been introduced by His Excellency to ensure that our education can assist in social economic development. In the first-place, education is the key driver of social economic development as well as sustainable development in our communities. Education 5.0 is one of the basis that has already been set by His Excellency to make sure that we can utilise that in trying to preserve those medicines. We can improve them, value add them and we can even conscientise our people so that they can appreciate the importance of our medicines. We have five pillars of Education 5.0, which include the research, teaching, community service, innovation and industrialisation. Of importance in this motion is the issue of research and innovation. Those two pillars can actually assist in making sure that the local herbs can have value to our people. I think Education 5.0 can assist in the digital documentation of our medicinal herbs where there is a need to identify them and after the identification they are documented digitally. The only problem that we have in that particular area is the issue of the transfer of knowledge from the experts to the next generation. According to our culture, I do not know how best we can unlock that.  According to our culture, it is very difficult for the traditional practitioners to tell someone the medicine that might assist in treating a certain disease.  They usually hide; it becomes a secret for a family and some of these practitioners die with that important knowledge on the medicines.  There is also need for community engagement, fostering active participation from local communities and the traditional healers in research projects, ensuring the ethical and peaceful indigenous knowledge.

         Our indigenous knowledge system needs to be incorporated, even very close to our universities because we have innovation hubs at our universities.  We already have some prototypes of how to value add these medicines but there is need to encourage some of our practitioners to have a participatory approach, very close to our universities and colleges in research and the documentation of these medicines.  We also have the virtual learning process.  Nowadays, we have this Tiktok platform, sometimes it is being abused. Instead of using Tiktok to educate people on the traditional medicines, sometimes people might misuse that platform.  In other countries like China, Tiktok is used as one of the platforms which is very useful to educate the people; to disseminate information, which is very crucial to their community.

         There is also a need for inter-disciplinary collaboration.  The whole Government approach encouraging the collaboration between traditional healers, scientists and policy makers, to bridge this gap between the traditional knowledge and modern scientific understanding.  So, there is that need to approach the elephant in the room together as a family.  There is also need for quality control. We have some bogus people who are selling these traditional medicines on verandas and public places.  There is no standard control on how much we should give to a person of this particular age with this particular disease.  So, there is need to do more research and make sure that we have the standard control on the use of the traditional medicines.  I hope if we look at other nations like China that I have already alluded to, they use food as medicine.  

         THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Makope, you are left with three minutes.

         HON. MAKOPE: So, we have to look at the food that we eat.  The inclusion of these medicines in our food, just like the Chinese that I talked about, their tea is medicine. If you look at the starch they eat, it is medicine.  So, every time when they eat, they boost their immune system from food stuff.  Therefore, I want to support the motion that was raised by Hon. P. Zhou, proffering some solutions on how best we can support our traditional medicines to ensure that the current generation can utilise our local resources.  I thank you. 

         HON. P. ZHOU: I move that the debate do now adjourn.

         HON. MAKOPE: I second.

         Motion put and agreed to.

         Debate to resume: Wednesday, 19^th February, 2025.

         On the motion of HON. KAMBUZUMA, seconded by HON. C. MOYO, the House adjourned at six o’clock p.m.