Projects Implemented

Resilience Assistance for Assets & Improved Nutrition (RAIN) 2016-2017

The project was implemented in Gwanda North, ward 5 and 6 and it sought to integrate short term emergency programming with long term recovery and developmental programming against an integrated shock context caused by a drought and protracted poor micro-economic fundamentals in the locale. It was guided by the theory that households have greater resilience to crisis when they possess a broad and diverse base of assets. It worked with the community to deliver unconditional Supplementary School Feeding (SSF) for 2040 children in 5 schools & conditional Food for Assets (FFA) Relief Assistance to 400 households (2000 people) during the peak hunger season of September to February 2016. The project linked food assistance with conditional support to maintain or establish infrastructure that will assist resilience to potential future shocks. The SSF availed one supplementary meal of porridge at school for each child. Dry rations were packed for each child to take home over the December – January holiday to ensure that feeding is sustained until the cohort returns for the new school year in 2017.

Sustained Conservation Agriculture and Livestock Enterprise (SCALE) 2017-2019

The project continued from the Gwanda CFFFS 2545-21(2013 – 2016) program, where 250 volunteer farmers established and maintained at least 0.25ha CA plots digging planting basins marked to achieve a plant spacing of 90cm x 60cm.  Ripping and use of direct seeders were introduced in the 2^nd and 3^rd years of project implementation as a semi-mechanized labor reducing intervention that would facilitate increased cropping and contribute to the objective of increased food security. SCALE intended to achieve at least 6 years of continuous application of CA principles on a piece of land, at which time optimum benefits (yields) were expected. It promoted semi-mechanized CA concepts employing ripping and direct seeding. Seed production was uplifted through market linkages to professional seed growers and seed inspection services. The livestock component of CA was adopted and used to obliterate the conflict between CA crop production and livestock rearing, where plant residues meant for livestock fodder were exclusively collected and used as dead matter mulch. Intercropping of mainly cereals and legumes was promoted to achieve live mulching in light of scarcity of dead mulch and the growing conflict with free roaming livestock.

BIC-CDS Response Against Covid-19 Spread (BRACS) 2020

The BRACS Project was a COVID-19 community awareness and sensitization programme that sought to combat the spread of the corona virus and other negative behavioral patterns in Zimbabwe. The project’s main focus was on Brethren in Christ (BICC) Churches across the country. The intervention further sought to capacitate church leadership in view of escalation of Gender Based Violence (GBV) cases. The project provided information, education and communication (IEC) materials, provision of face masks, soap bars, sanitizers disinfectants and above all hygiene education. All churches were potentially high risk areas. The project targeted the Brethren In Christ church constituency, Mission stations, particularly Mtshabezi hospital as was nominated by district authorities as one of the isolation centers in Gwanda District. In rendering assistance to the BICC community, CDS in conjunction with the Ministry of Health & Child Care worked in liaison with the church administration, Bishop’s office as well as the Brethren in Christ Administrative Secretary, in rolling out the program. The BRACS project embarked on an intensive public awareness campaign particularly within the church leadership so that information cascades down to congregations and church affiliated institutions. The project aimed to reach an estimated 25,077 individuals.

Gwanda Gender Sensitive Food Security Programme (GGSFSP) 2019-2023

The GGSFAP was a gender sensitive and responsive conservation agriculture (CA) project targeting a total of 800 CA farmers 500 fodder farmers and 200 gardeners totaling a gross total of 1 500 female and male farmer households in 6 wards of Gwanda North for sustainable crop and livestock production. Following, the high exposure of the mentioned wards to perpetuating food insecurity, the project sought to strengthen farmer crop production towards increasing the number of Monthly Adequate Household Food Provisioning from own farmer farm production.

50OR 2021-2023