Highlanders - Dynamos deal: A case of Economic empowerment

The gesture by Kuda Tagwirei's Sakunda Holdings to empower the nation through sport is one of the greatest developments in the history of our football. This greatest ever sponsorship in Zimbabwe for Dynamos and Highlanders is considered to be the purest and most positive type of promotion since independence. The 5.3 million sponsorship deal which runs for three years came at a time when the players' and the entire football staff's morale was at its lowest ebb. Therefore, he has empowered the players, the coaches and other stakeholders. Everything has been improved and we expect more of these sponsorships so that our nation develops.

The sponsorship package will cover rentals, renovation of dilapidated offices to state-of-the-art offices, purchasing of quality kit, take care of all the technical staff and above all the two clubs will each get 890 United States Dollars per year. This is pure transformation of players and Kuda Tagwirei and his Sakunda Holdings are arguably the role models or beau ideals of excellence thanks to Modern Ngwenya, the vice Chairperson of Highlanders who pushed for the lucrative sponsorship.

The financial package is expected to assist Dynamos - Highlander's football clubs to meet their expenses, technical staff, players and obligations such that they run their businesses as professional football clubs. In the past, players had resorted to begging and vending, and their fortunes have been restored. To this end, Sakunda Holdings is committing to paying each club USD $890 000 annually over the next three years. The deal has seen the two coaches, technical staff walking away with top range vehicles and many other benefits.

Empowerment is the process of encouraging people and giving them information, guidance and resources which they need in order to take charge of their lives and make better decisions as well as changing their lives. The challenges that many nations face today are due to lack of community empowerment. People should be encouraged to participate in all development to strengthen their nations economically, socially and politically. What people need to do is to adapt to current economic situations. When they adapt to the situations, they become active thereby improving quality of their lives. Nevertheless, the possibility of this is determined by the availability and accessibility of resources. Therefore, giving people access to resources, is actually building confidence which is a plus in the direction towards attaining economic growth and transformation. Empowerment breeds strong independent individuals who are reliable in their respective communities. It also creates productive people who contribute to economic development as well as building of a better tomorrow. Inopportunely, Zimbabweans continue to face socio-economic and political exclusion in national development issues.

The economic and political standards in Zimbabwe have been bastardized and the living standards are deplorable due to lack of empowerment. In order to attain better living standards, people have to be empowered. For nations to achieve political and economic stability, all the people, notwithstanding their political, religious or cultural affiliations have to be accommodated. This basically underlines the significance of empowerment. The rights of every Zimbabwean must be respected. Local community empowerment must be promoted. This will make better the future of our ailing nation.

Many nations are facing high rates of poverty and unemployment. The rate of poverty can only be reduced if the people are empowered. When the people especially the youths are empowered, they create employment, become productive and minimize polarization. Lack of empowerment is limiting talented Zimbabweans who to showcase their various skills. Who among us shall give our people the latitude to showcase their skills? Who among us shall empower people in various sectors? We have people in Zimbabwe who have the capacity to turn around things through empowerment. Unfortunately, very few have done tangible things.

It is a fact that young susceptible mind needs to be empowered morally, academically, technically and financially. Building the nation starts with empowering the people. Empowered people are able to fulfil their dreams because they have access to the opportunities, skills, and resources they need to reach their full potential. Football is a critical sector which needs empowerment and support. Regrettably, our football giants Dembare and Highlanders had sunk into oblivion. It took Sakunda Holdings' benevolence to take out these football titans out of quagmire they found themselves in. They have set a bigger pace for the community which others emulate, will see monumental developments not only in football sector but all sectors. Players need motivation to perform well. We also saw a number of veteran players who have been honoured and blessed with houses by Sakunda Holdings. These players include Madinda Ndlovu, Moses Chunga who got houses worthy 90 000 United States Dollars each and the late George Shaya whose family was given a house worthy 120 000 United States Dollars. These iconic footballers contributed a lot to the country's football. Football is by far the most popular and most dominant sport in the world. Certainly, sports promotion is the most popular and the most far-reaching promotional channel. Investing a few million dollars in a club, even for the poorest countries in the world like Zimbabwe can be very cost-effective in the long term.

Let's empower our people. Let's empower our local communities and enable them to increase control over their lives.

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