The Story of Sakubva Community
Sakubva is a suburb on the outskirts of Mutare filled with single-room homes originally built for male industrial workers. As the community has grown and changed, the infrastructure has remained the same resulting in multiple generations of families living in one residence leading to massive overcrowding and very poor sanitation. A steady income is elusive, forcing young girls into prostitution in order to make enough money to buy the food needed to sustain their families. Many children have been orphaned due to their parents dying from HIV/AIDs, leaving a void of parental guardianship. Grandparents, many of whom are frail from old age are left with the responsibility to care, but often find they are overwhelmed and unable to cope. The alarmingly high rates of HIV/AIDs, tuberculosis and infection within Sakubva have a devastating impact on the thousands of families who can barely afford food for a single day, let alone clinic fees.
135 Children currently supported
11 Care Workers Coordinator by Maria
Basic Services Started in 2012
10 km from the MUTARE Local Office
Currently, there are 11 Care Workers from the Sakubva Christian Caring Trust Community Based Organisation (CBO), who sacrificially give of their time and energy to care for 135 of the most vulnerable children in Sakubva. Under the leadership of coordinator Priscilla, these Care Workers are united in their desire to bring love and hope to a desperate community. Coming to the Life Centre, the children receive a hot, nutritious meal daily, and are known by their names. Another way that the children are supported is with health care. When children are unwell, they are provided with clinic fees, easing the burden on their struggling families who would otherwise have been unable to afford it. Additionally, Care Workers advocate on behalf of their children to attend local schools for free or at a reduced price.
As volunteers, the Care Workers do not receive an income and so decided to start their own Income Generating Activity (IGA). Beginning in 2015, the Care Workers began making and selling peanut butter, which has been effective and resulted in the Care Workers being able to have a share of the small profit. Hands at Work is committed to helping the Care Workers balance their time between this IGA and ensuring holistic care for the children continues.
The local church in Sakubva has been mobilised to respond to the Biblical mandate to care for the orphaned and the widowed. The local Hands at Work team in Mutare is continuing to walk with the local churches and dreams of seeing them become more involved in the day-to-day activities at the Life Centre.
Meet Maria
In February, Care Worker Maria found 13-year-old Gift* and his three siblings alone, in desperate need of food, and caring for their ill grandfather. Their mother, Precious*, had been gone for two weeks looking for odd jobs in the community, desperate to provide for her family. Sadly, Precious is alone in caring for her children, as her husband left to get remarried and doesn’t support the family. Occasionally, they will receive handouts from the local church that Precious is involved with, but the challenge of paying for school fees and the basic necessities remains. Understanding the seriousness of the situation, Gift and his siblings were immediately invited to the Life Centre. Since then, Gift is slowly starting to open up and play with the other children as he learns to trust that he will not be abandoned by the Care Workers. In addition to their emotional needs being met, Gift and his siblings receive a hot, nutritious meal daily and have been supported with the provision of blankets.
The local Hands at Work team in Mutare currently supports three Community Based Organisations, which exist to care for the most vulnerable in their communities. The office provides training, networking, and encouragement to those Community Based Organisations like Sakubva. It also gives administrative support, including helping with funding proposals, monitoring and evaluation, bookkeeping and reporting to donors.
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