Rural life in Zimbabwe
Extreme rural everyday life in Zimbabwe.
The following must not be seen as an attempt to downplay Western culture on that of a Third World developing nation. On the contrary we found that the average rural person in Zimbabwe has a relatively uncomplicated life in comparison to that of a fully developed nation. There certainly are some challenges to be had by these people but it seemingly is overcome by shere tenacity and ingenuity to adapt to the conditions at hand.
A number of years ago political turmoil spoiled superb unspoilt free range hunting. Most of the areas that were affected were the cities with large population densities. The average population in the remote areas of western Zimbabwe were more interested in wanting to know where their next meal was going to come from rather than getting involved in political rioting. Since then society has returned to as normal as can be and hunting concessions have yielded hunting conditions that can be compared to some of the best truly wild hunting areas on the African continent.
It is our pleasure to help contributing towards the better well-being of communities by introducing disciplined hunting and sharing the rewards thereof with communities that desperately need support.
Above: Cash is short in hand and most people are dependant on direct family sending money from the cities and from subsistance farming. It is understandable that when an entire herd of elephants stroll in to their corn fields and decimate two months worth of food that the average person will become irate. As hunters we contribute to these people sustaining themselves with food, and even supplementing the food with protein in the form of the meat that is harvested.
Above: Since the beginning of time man has had to protect his livestock from predators. Not only from predators like lion, leopard and hyena, but also from human predators.
Above: General dealer stores supply the basic commodities like soap, batteries, tinned food and beverages.
Above: In all of the remote rural homesteads we came across there was no electricity at all. The only electrical appliance we saw at many homesteads were ghetto blasters powered by solar panels.
Above: Cooking is done in a dedicated kitchen hut. Having no electricity, or electrical utensils everything is cooked on an open fire. The smoke repels all insects and ensures food stays fresh longer. Note the leaves, a type of wild spinach that was harvested by the women.
Above: What you have is what you make use of. The very basics are available and are used to the maximum. Water for household use requires a trip to a local hand pump operated well with a donkey cart or ox drawn cart. These are social events where far-off families get to exchange important news, socialize and of course where the women get to gossip some!