Twenty two Village Headmen in Itebe Ward of Mwanachingwala Chiefdom in Mazabuka District have been empowered with bicycles by Solidaridad Zambia in its quest to enhance community mobilization, rotational grazing and rangeland management.
Solidaridad Zambia Country Manager Sheila Garakara handed over the 24 bicycles of which 22 were received by the headmen and two by the Community Market Centre.
Ms Garakara said other than promoting practices such as rotational grazing, leather crafts and rangeland management, the donation was also meant to help the community manage its animals and land better and to tap into other sources of income.
“We have the technical know-how and the financial power, but the traditional leaders have the people who can help us attain the change we want to see in this community,” she said.
Ms Garakara said she was happy with the collaboration between her organization and the community in Itebe, adding that the K250 each headman had to contribute towards the bicycles would give them a sense of ownership.
Ms Garakara said this in Mazabuka on Wednesday during the handover ceremony of the bicycles to the community.
And the Solidaridad Country Manager was hopeful the knowledge being imparted to the traditional leaders would be passed on to the next generation.
Meanwhile, Senior Headman Davis Mweemba of Himoonga Village said since Solidaridad started engaging the community in 2018, tic borne diseases had reduced, bush fires had stopped, soil fertility had improved and youths had been trained in leather tanning.
Headman Mweemba attributed this to the numerous trainings the traditional leaders had undertaken on best agricultural practices, through support from Solidaridad.
“The community has responded positively to all the awareness they have received on best agricultural practices. The donation is a good gesture as it will help us in mobilizing communities for project activities,” he said.
And Mazabuka District Fisheries and Livestock Coordinator Simataa Simataa said Itebe had been opened up to development as a result of the various interventions made by the private sector to enhance farming and livestock management in the area.
Mr Simataa commended the headmen and farmers in the area for being united, hardworking and investing in activities aimed at uplifting the living standards of people in the area.
Meanwhile, Itebe Ward Councillor Phanuel Lwiindi commended the community for putting up 40 percent of the resources through labour, sand and poles, to construct a market centre where farmers could sell their cattle without the involvement of middlemen.
Mr Lwiindi said most farmers were currently selling their cattle at low prices because they dealt with middlemen and had no direct access to buyers.
ZANIS reports that Solidaridad has also set to put up 70 percent of the resources required to complete the market centre.
