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| October 2009 Newsletter |
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| Tuesday, 17 November 2009 06:24 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Zimbabwe today When ever we meet people one of the first things they ask is what the situation in Zimbabwe is like today. In many ways that is a difficult question to answer and one could say the situation has improved, stayed the same and is getting worse, and all those answers would be correct in a sense. With the dollarization of the economy, access to cash has improved, fuel is easy to obtain and food has filled the shelves again. However, these changes are yet to filter down and change the lives of the majority of Zimbabweans. The cost of living has risen incredibly and most people cannot afford the food filling the shelves. Injustices and human rights abuses continue, people are still hungry, Zimbabwe AIDS levels remain some of the highest in the world and education and medical facilities are, on the whole, in a state of collapse. Some recent Zimbabwean Statistics· 129 children per thousand die before the age of 5 · Over half (53%) of families in Zimbabwe have inadequate sanitation· Estimated that over 20% of adults are HIV positive· 1.1 million AIDS orphans, 1.4 million children orphaned due to all causes· 56% of the population lives in extreme poverty (less than 1US$ a day)· Life expectancy 37 for men and 34 women · Latest UN figures, the number of people needing assistance will rise to 5.1 million, or 45 per cent of the population (UN News Centre; Report on Children; WHO report on Zimbabwe)
Audrey Sithole, one story… Audrey is an orphan, who is also a single mother with a young baby; she also cares for her younger sister. Still 16 she has so much responsibility as the sole head and the provider of her family. Alone and abandoned by the baby’s father and her inheritance from her parents snatched away due to debt, the burden is so much for her young shoulders. Currently she is staying at the home of an elderly woman, who is also struggling to make ends meet. Due to the great need she is on the list of the Central Baptist Church as a person whom they support on a monthly basis. In her case they felt this was not enough and that the best thing to do was to find a way to empower her to better provide for her family. She came up with the idea of enrolling in a Beauty Academy where she could learn how to be a hairdresser with the hope of either being employed by a hair-dressing salon or running her own business in the future. Rubatsiro Ministries has contributed to these fees and looks forward to following Audrey’s story as she starts her study.
Promotion of Rubatsiro in New Zealand In an effort to raise support within New Zealand we have continued to hold monthly coffee evenings which have been a real success so far! These evenings involve a 15 to 20 minute presentation on Rubatsiro and our Partners in Zimbabwe followed by coffee and dessert and a time for guests to talk with the trustees. We also gave a short presentation at Belmont Baptist last month and look forward to sharing about Rubatsiro Ministries in more churches around New Zealand. If you would be interested in hosting a coffee evening or having us come and share at your church please get in touch with us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
School Fees In an email this month from Harare, Pastor John Bell expressed his thanks for Rubatsiro’s assistance with school fees this term.“I would like to thank you so very much for the kindness of your recent donation towards school fees for the needy who come to Central Baptist Church, and also to some of our church members. With the dollarization of the economy at the beginning of the year, the inflation was reigned in to some extent, and much of the economy has stabilized. However, an unexpected effect has been that schools are now charging fees in US dollars, and, while not charging much in international standards, have set fees well above what the poor and even the lower middle class can afford. And so we have seen a marked increase in appeals for help in educational assistance. And we consider such assistance of great importance, food will keep people alive today, education will help them live productively for decades.”The following shows a breakdown of assistance, by way of school fees, given by Rubatsiro Ministries. Full or partial school fees paid as of October 2009
Rubatsiro Food Parcel: An example of what is sent to be distributed by Central Baptist Church, Harare· 5kg Rice· 10kg Mealie Meal· 500gr Salt· 1 bottle Peanut Butter· 1kg Sugar Beans· 1kg Kapenta (dried fish)· 2 bars Soap· 1kg Sugar· 750ml Cooking Oil· 1 box Candles
Credit Card Facility now Available on Website The Rubatsiro website has recently been updated to include a credit card facility through which donations can be made online. We hope that this will provide a more convenient way of giving to Rubatsiro and allow for people outside of New Zealand to give financially to the Ministry.
Condolences The Rubatsiro Board of Trustees wish to extend their heartfelt condolences to Sharky and Susan Masuka, the co-ordinators of our partners Fathers’ Love Ministries, for the loss of their 11 year old daughter, Samantha Masuka, on the 28th September. You are in our thoughts and prayers! |