By Peter Tanyanyiwa

Zimbabwe Ezekiel Guti University recently made headlines for innovation in this Covid-19 pandemic period with the innovation of a Covid-19 booth, which sprays and sanitizes people, it was rolled out for the benefit of the whole country.

In that same respect, sanitizers were created through their innovation and entrepreneurial drive, with communities in Zimbabwe benefiting from this initiative.

“At least 20 community members were trained in making of sanitizers so that they further train others in this art which does not only give them employment and livelihoods but contribute to the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic. To date the number has doubled,” said ZEGU’s Professors Evelyn Garwe.

Having said that, one asks how does that have to with a person in Harare? One wonders that if such initiatives were done close to where he or she stays, then the story would be relevant.
Relevance has been brought to Harare residents as the same institution whose two leaders Professor Ezekiel Hamandawana Guti and Professor Christopher James Chetsanga recently got Order of the Stars- Gold recognition on Heroes Day recently by the state of Zimbabwe, through its campus located in Belvedere.

I got anxious to know, what could this mean to a Harare resident like me? If the institution is about excellence, developing a total person and creating an entrepreneurial mind, how is it possible that the Harare campus hasn’t made waves like the sister campus in Bindura? I pondered and got to the location to find a state-of-the-art campus with three floors prepared to house students at all levels and various faculties. What is outstanding is that, it is the only university that is private and pioneered by a black person. It had to finish all construction of facilities before opening and never rented, but initiated on its own premise which I thought deserves credit.

I realized that at the Harare Campus there is room for block release, which takes care of the working class who wishes to develop their mind and capacities. What just took my attention was their program, Bachelor of Science Honors Degree in Agri-Business Management. Considering that Zimbabwe’s development is in agriculture, if people knew a giant sleeping behind the city sports center where innovation is native, they would enroll in such programs and grow with the institution which has repute for innovation.

An educated country progresses, therefore institutions as the above are a possible to Zimbabwe’s economic challenges in their culture of innovation.

Considering programs that are tailor made to accommodate development trends that may feedback go the land that they are native to. It is not harmful to give credit where it is due, and in this case, I take a bow to this deserving University. The gold stars which its Chancellor and Vice Chancellor got are well deserved.