Thembe Khumalo: A New Hope in Zimbabwe

It’s not like we haven’t heard it enough times – we have:  Africa is rising.  More and more attention is being given to what was previously the Dark Continent, but is now being seen as the hope of the world.  Well, perhaps not exactly the hope of the world, but certainly the space to look to for solutions to many of the world’s pressing problems.  From resources to resilience, Africa seems to have a special set of ingredients that are critical to the successful outcome of today’s global dish.  In a drama where for too long other players have hogged the spotlight, Africa is emerging from an underappreciated supporting role where it was not even a contender for Best Supporting Actress to a space where it may potentially become Best Director some day.

Enter Zimbabwe, stage right. Putting aside the crazy circus of party politics, I am beginning to sense a new optimism about Zimbabwe, albeit on a smaller scale.  More and more business people I encounter are talking about planning for the long term.  They are preparing for the day that the games will end and the grown-ups will be in charge.   The encouraging thing is, they are planning for it now.  This is not what we have seen in the past, where despondency prevailed and people operated reactively to an environment they felt they couldn’t control.   It’s almost as if Zimbabwe is saying, “We’ve seen the worst of it, now we know what to do – we’ll be ready!” 

This time last year I attended an event that reminded me of the kind of life I dreamt of living when I first arrived in Harare as a starry-eyed 22 year old many years ago. I found that while the lights were brighter than those in Bulawayo, they didn’t always work; and though the cars were bigger, the roads were smaller!  But somewhere in the hullabaloo of the capital was a glimmer of glamour that I could just about touch, but not quite grasp.  This is the glamour I encountered up close when Africa Albida pulled together their network of business partners.  Here’s what I learnt:

There are now 9 international and regional airlines servicing Harare.  The new Victoria Falls airport, with a 4.2 km runway will be operational this year, and a new terminal will handle long haul wide body jets. In the last two years there have been 8 new camps and lodges in Hwange as well as investment and upgrades to existing lodges.  There has been much investment in upgrades to tourism properties in Hwange, Victoria Falls, Matopos and Harare and revenues continue to grow.

And all of the good news does not only relate to tourism, though of course this is good news for all of us.  Today driving to Bulawayo is no longer the nightmare it used to be.  Making one’s way to Harare International airport fills one with optimism as we have not only appropriate road surface and size, but also solar-powered street lights.   Such lights are going up all over the city and I’m thinking that I may finally enjoy the bright lights I dreamt of when I landed in the capital twenty years ago!  Just about everyone and his granny has a mobile phone and many of them smart phones.

I want to believe that the reasoning behind such investment decisions is sound, and may well be a vote of confidence in us as a nation.  There are calls for more accountability and action being taken to make it happen.  In April the Code of Corporate Governance was finally launched, having been birthed way back in 2009!  High powered officials are finding themselves as vulnerable to scrutiny as the common man, and social media is enabling a much more open dialogue with those in power.   

Of course there are dissenting voices; there are those who see conspiracies and calculated cunning behind every new headline.  They may well have a point – who can tell?  There are those who believe “Africa Rising” to be a myth perpetrated by global giants with monstrous agendas in a megalomanic game of thrones.

But as for me and my house, we need some positive energy to help us keep moving forward.  We need to be reminded what a beautiful country we live in and how important it is for us to realise its potential.  We need more good news served with our breakfast, and a feeling of hope to take to bed with us at night.  We need to know that when we wake up tomorrow morning we have the opportunity to contribute to a better Zimbabwe for this generation and the one that follows it.  We need the new optimism.

Thembe Khumalo is Executive Director at Island Hospice & Healthcare, Zimbabwe.

 

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