The story of Rutendo Muzanenhamo of Gadzema, Chinhoyi, is of determination and hard work.
The 24-year-old entrepreneur's passion for welding has seen her breaking barriers and paving the way for other young women to follow in her footsteps.
She has made strides in the male-dominated trade and is making a name for herself despite the challenges in the industry.
After completing Ordinary Levels, Rutendo passed four subjects and could not pursue education further.
Although she is the last born in a family of four, she also felt she had to contribute towards the well-being of the family.
She had no hope of employment and started assisting some hairdressers for a wage. The money was, however, too little to sustain the family.
Her dream of becoming a welder came true when she was selected as one of the beneficiaries of the Vocational Skills Activity, under the resilience building projects in 2021, as a metal fabrication student.
The project being implemented by Government and developmental partners; USAID, World Food Programme and LEAD, saw Rutendo attend a three month-training course in welding at the Chinhoyi University of Technology.
"I had always wanted to venture into welding. My grandfather was a welder but he never believed women could do the same job. I wanted to prove I could also make it.
"The journey was not easy though, I had to endure. After completing the three months training I went for attachment and this was the difficult part. Some of the people I was attached to were not patient, and did not believe women could do the job. A few were, however, tolerant and took me through the process," she said.
Muzanenhamo was also provided with the start-up welding equipment; grinder, welding machine, generator and other accessories.
She is now manufacturing window frames, panel doors, sliding gates and doors.
"This course has financially empowered me. I used to stay with my parents but I have since moved out. I am able to provide for my family, look after my late sister's three children and send them to school.
"On average I get around US$800 profit per month," she said.
Muzanenhamo has graduated to be an employer. She currently has two employees.
One of the employees, Kudakwashe Mutandwa used to be a tout and abused drugs.
"I used to be a tout and used the little money I got to buy beer and drugs. Rutendo came to me and offered to train me. At first I ignored her, but after I got arrested I realised I had passed a chance.
"She trained me and now I can also make window frames. I can now be entrusted with money. I can handle customers well and have reformed to be a better person. My wife had left because of my rowdy behaviour, but she has since returned after I changed for the better," he said.
Muzanenhamo is one of the beneficiaries of the WFP's resilience-building programme, supporting urban communities facing food insecurity and vulnerability against economic and climate shocks.
WFP supports urban communities through sustainable resilience, livelihood creation and socio-economic empowerment activities.
These programmes are implemented through community-led approaches focusing on capacity building, livelihood promotion and socio-economic empowerment.
Activities include income-generating projects, such as mushroom production, poultry, rabbit production, hydroponics, peanut butter processing and detergent making at the household level.
At the community level, beneficiaries benefit from various community assets, including boreholes and market sheds. Youth are mainly targeted in digital skills and vocational training to facilitate their business ideas and promote employment opportunities.
These initiatives have contributed to personal development, economic empowerment, and improved household stability among beneficiaries. Muzanenhamo also expressed gratitude to the Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Development and Vocational Training for the support she received.
"They taught me how to run the business. They also recommended me to get a loan to boost my funds and took me throughout the whole process. The project being implemented by USAID through the WFP LEAD has a huge impact, especially on us youths. A number of youths are turning to drugs as they do not have skills, now that I have been empowered I am also going to help other young girls in my area.
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"In five years' time I foresee myself having an established company. I am in the process of registering a company," she said.
WFP head of Harare field office, Bianca Dzvairo, said the organisation was implementing various activities, including cash-based transfers.
"We have the urban cash-based transfers and here in Chinhoyi we are supporting 15 000 individuals. Each month they get US$13 per person in the household. This is a multi-purpose disbursement. It is used for various purposes at household level.
"We have noted that most of the beneficiaries use the money to buy food at household level and a few say they use the money to supplement school fees, medical bills and others have also gone the extra mile to make savings which they convert into some livelihood activities.
"The programme has been running for six months and so far we have been working well with Government because as the WFP SDG number 17; partnerships is something that we uphold," she said.
