The First Lady, Auxillia Mnangagwa, launched the First Lady’s Widows Association in Mhangura, Doma, to empower widows across Zimbabwe by offering life-transforming short courses and projects.
Acting as the patron of the association, Amai Mnangagwa’s primary objective is to ensure that widows and their children can sustain themselves in a dignified manner, The Herald has revealed.
The Association seeks to address the challenges faced by widows, who often find themselves in poverty after the loss of their spouses.
They are also often taken advantage of by unscrupulous relatives who strip them of their assets, such as homes, farms, and vehicles.
To prevent exploitation, the First Lady’s Widows Association, which is going to be established in all provinces of the country, will collaborate with lawyers and professional executors to protect widows from falling into marriages that could result in property loss.
To date, over 2,000 widows from Zvimba, Chegutu, Kariba, Sanyati, Makonde, Hurungwe, and Mhondoro-Ngezi have successfully completed training through the association and its partners, and were awarded certificates by the First Lady.
During the launch event, Amai Mnangagwa said: “I have come to form First Lady’s widows’ association as I work with you in everything. This is a first of its kind to come from the office of the First Lady.
“This is no longer the time to mourn, but to ask God to give you strength to look after the family. I have come to strengthen you and give you dignity through projects,” she said.
Amai Mnangagwa said the First Lady’s Widows Association is not for lamenting, but to uplift and motivate each other.
“We want to kill the bad names you are called as widows with some being called prostitutes. Our challenges as women are similar but what only differs are days of occurrence. Today it is you becoming a widow and tomorrow it is someone else. I am everyone’s mother and I am not selective since I want to transform all families.
“I have started the First Lady’s Widows Association here and it’s going to spread to all provinces. I want tangible things to come out of this and I say no to laziness, gossip and thievery. You should be trustworthy when doing your projects as groups.
“The Ministry of Women’s Affairs will assist us in selling the products we would have made. I have brought along the Master of High Court so that he teaches us the legal provisions so that we become complete women. I will visit all the seven districts here,” she said.
