On the 18th of April Zimbabwe celebrated 41 years of independence. Here in Africa independence means we are no longer at the mercy of the white man. It should also mean that we should finally be able to reclaim our land, freedom and dignity.

A torn Zimbabwean national flag
Zimbabwean National Flag

An ideal Zimbabwe is one where we have young people working soon after graduation instead of becoming street hustlers. It has become clear that one needs strong connections to get a job in Zimbabwe and this is with every job. Even if it’s a simple waiting job at a local restaurant. Most people have resorted to leaving the country in search of greener pastures. For now that seems like the only ideal solution but the truth is home is where the heart is. You can build a house but you can never build a home. Most Zimbabweans in the diaspora would love to return home but what is there to return to? A worthless currency? Hunger? They would rather stay where they are and send money back home. It’s a sad reality.

Picture a country where there are equal opportunities for everyone. Where one can get an internship or permanent job as soon as they graduate without a “connection”. Sometimes not even the strongest network can get you your dream job in Zimbabwe. I dream of a Zimbabwe where parents can afford to send their children to school and their children have all the basic commodities they need to ensure that they go to school hyped up enough to focus at school. A country where we do not have old people selling fruits and brooms by the roadside but instead, are enjoying their pension at home.

It has been 41 years since Zimbabwe was released from the clutches of the white men but we still have women and new born babies dying every single day because hospitals are not fully equipped to provide them with the proper care they need. It’s heartbreaking when I come across articles about hospitals recording more than 5 maternal deaths a day. Nothing is as heartbreaking as losing the life you took 9 months to create. No mother deserves to bury their child and yet here we are because of poor allocation of state funds. Doctors are traumatized. The sight of blood alone can break a person, now imagine watching people die every day and there is nothing you can do to save them. It’s unfair.

After 41 years, like the Israelites, Zimbabweans should be entering the land of milk and honey. Full of opportunities, restored to its former glory days when it was called the bread basket of Zimbabwe. All we do now is receive donation after donation. No one can pin point where exactly it went wrong but I dream that one day Zimbabwe will be a country worth living in and not a graveyard.

Tanaka Daka
Zimbabwean

Final year student studying Computer Science and a personal blogger.

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