In a move reminiscent of Operation Murambatsvina in 2005, Zimbabwe’s government has threatened to destroy “illegal structures,” including homes and tuck shops.

Local Government Minister Ignatius Chombo said last week that a national programme to demolish these structures would take place.

According to one of our subscribers:

The demolition of structures went into the second day today in Ruwa. An operation which some critics like me have dubbed Operation Murambavanhu. Councillors have refused to come out in the open to discourage this Operation, fearing victimization from Chombo. Their answer to disgruntled victims is that “there is little we can do. It is a national program championed by the central government.”

News sources confirm that demolitions have begun in Ruwa, with houses and tuck shops being torn down.

If demolitions begin in your area, or you have eye-witness reports or photographs please share them with us via WhatsApp on +263 772 452201 or via email to info [at] kubatana [dot] net.

Also, VOA Zimbabwe says “The public is advised to approach the Ministry of Local Government for more details on mobile number +263 712 804 880 or +263 4 791287.” If the Councillors won’t speak up for us, we need to speak up for ourselves. Get in touch with the Ministry of Local Government and tell them what you think.

A report, from the Research and Advocacy Unit, interrogates whether or not Parliament is “a meeting of more or less idle people.” It costs $1,115 per sitting to maintain an MP, and the average House sitting is 2 ½ hours long. Read it here

Child alternative care assessment study: SOS Children’s Villages Zimbabwe
Deadline: 14 November 2013

SOS Children’s Villages Zimbabwe is a non-governmental child development organisation established in Zimbabwe in 1985. Its mission is to build families for children that have lost parental care or at risk of losing parental care, help them shape their own futures and share in the development of their communities. It is a member of SOS Children’s Villages International, which is currently working in 133 countries. In Zimbabwe SOS Children’s Villages is implementing various child and youth development interventions focusing on the provision of direct essential services; capacity building of child care-givers and community partners; as well as advocacy in the areas of care, health, education and gender.

On 18th October 2010, SOS Children’s Villages International unanimously adopted the UN Guidelines for the Alternative Care of Children as a key framework for its work. SOS Children’s Villages has therefore dedicated itself to implement the UN Guidelines in its work as well as to advocate for their application around the world. The organization believes that the UN Guidelines for the Alternative Care of Children has the potential to promote children’s rights and improve the lives of millions of children, their families and communities around the world.

It is against this background that SOS Children’s Villages Zimbabwe intends to conduct a care assessment exercise to ascertain the extent to which children under various care systems are benefiting through implementation of current policy and legal framework.

Purpose of the assessment

The care assessment will focus on assessing:
-The measures in country to prevent family separation
-The various living arrangements for children in alternative care with a focus on: Extended family (kinship care),Community care, Formal foster care, Residential child care, and
-The administrative arrangements managing the above mentioned services.

It will also explore how the current national legal and policy framework governs the delivery of services in these various forms of care.

Please use this link to access full Tors

Cancer kills more people globally than HIV/Aids, TB and Malaria, and in Africa it is becoming a growing health burden. There are likely to be 16 million new cases of cancer every year, 70% of which will be in developing countries.  But in the face of lack of knowledge, scarce resources, and so many competing priorities, many have been powerless to do much.

Tanyaradzwa Cancer Trust in collaboration with Pamberi Trust invite you to a free public discussion on Cancer Treatment, to provide information and awareness about the various forms and dangers in some Cancer treatment methods, natural medicines, and more.

If you’d like to get civic and human rights updates + information on internships, awards, conferences and NGO job vacancies, subscribe to our weekly e:zine. Email: join [at] kubatana [dot] net

M & E Assistant: Local NGO
Deadline: 13 November 2013

Vacancy: Fixed term contract
Based in Harare with a lot of travel outside Harare

A local NGO in the child rights sector is implementing a Second Chance Education programme in 4 districts of Zimbabwe is recruiting an M and E Assistant on a fixed term contract basis.  The M and E assistant will be responsible for ensuring consistency in monitoring and evaluation approaches across activities, timely data collection and reporting, data quality control and storage, develop an understanding of the characteristics of an effective M&E system and explore how to design and manage an effective M&E system that will enable us to assess programme results, be accountable to different stakeholders, and identify learning.

Qualifications and person specifications
-Minimum of 3 years working experience in community development programmes.
-At least attained a first degree in Social Sciences (Psychology, Sociology, Social work, development studies).
-Knowledge and experience in research, education, gender, reproductive health and HIV/AIDS will be an added advantage.
-Excellent writing and interpersonal skills.
-Knowledge of statistical packages will be added advantage
-Knowledge of existing social safety networks.
-A valid driver’s license is mandatory

Send your CVs no later by 13 November 2013 to admin [at] chiedza [dot] org / chiedzacvs [at] gmail [dot] com

I went to the public dialogue on the Harare water crisis organised by the Wetlands Survival Forum last week.

I found the meeting, and the conversations I had with participants afterwards, both illuminating and infuriating.

Harare’s water situation is in a crisis. It was good to hear Mayor Manyenyeni acknowledge that, but as he also noted we are at least five years away from a solution – And a lot longer if the behaviour of both Harare residents and leadership doesn’t change.

Issues of urban cultivation, litter, development on wetlands, watering of lawns, the city’s decrepit infrastructure of pipes, siltation in Lake Chivero, the proliferation of boreholes and bulk water abstraction are all contributing to a dire water situation for Harare. According to one person I spoke with after the meeting, Harare’s water system will collapse within the next ten years unless large scale changes are made. It simply won’t be able to keep up with the growing demand and the steadily reducing supply.

There are some very basic things each of us can do to make a difference, like

• Don’t water your lawn, and speak with your neighbours, workplace and others about the negative impact a green lawn has on all of us
• Shower into a bucket and use that “grey water” to then fill your toilet cistern
• Place bricks wrapped in plastic (so they don’t crumble) or 500mL plastic water bottles in your toilet’s cistern so it uses less water with each flush (especially for older toilets, which typically had larger tanks)
• If it’s just urine, don’t bother to flush – Every flush of the toilet wastes a lot of water
• Don’t litter. The plastic you throw out on the road will likely get taken into a storm drain in the rains, and make its way to Lake Chivero, where it adds to the pollution choking the city’s filtration system
• Look into rain water harvesting. At a large or small scale, effectively capturing the rain water that does fall and bringing it back into the household for use would reduce the demand on both boreholes and the city’s water supply

But in addition to individual actions, there is a massive need for collective action. Speaking at the meeting, Councillor Mutizwa (Ward 9) said that local government’s concerns about some wetlands development projects had been overruled by national government, despite legislation like the Environmental Management Act which protects wetlands. In order to change Harare’s water situation, local and national government needs to be engaged. The Wetlands Survival Forum was set up to try and coordinate groups around the water issue – so support its efforts and get involved with it where you can. You can like them on Facebook to follow their activities, or email wetlandssurvivalforum [at] gmail [dot] com to get involved.