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Thandekile’s wish is to grow a successful business so she can continue to pay for her children’s education and pave the way for a better life. The closure of schools during lockdowns has badly affected Nomatter (11) and Forward’s (8) academic progress and like any mother, Thandekile wants more for them. Read their story from Bulawayo, Zimbabwe here.
Thandekile Ncube, 31, with daughter Nomatter, 11 and son, Forward, 8, inside their house in Zimbabwe. Photo: Cynthia R Matonhodze.
Nomatter and Forward were only in primary school when their father Donovan (35) died of Covid 19. Zimbabwe was in full lockdown and schools were shutdown. There were no remote classrooms or home-schooling options like here in Ireland.
Brother and sister Forward, 8 and Nomatter,11, at their home in the province of Bulawayo Photo Credit: Cynthia R Matonhodze
Life has been financially challenging for their thirty-one-year-old mother since their father passed away and now, she struggles to pay the children’s school fees and keep them educated.
But, like most eleven-year-old girls in Ireland, her daughter Nomatter already has aspirations for the future and knows exactly what she wants to do.
“I wish to be a nurse so that I help the sick,” she said and smiles and brightens up immediately when she speaks of the future. She wishes to be a nurse at the local St Joseph’s Hospital. She understands that nurses help the community by helping the sick and she wishes to do the same.
This isn’t an easy feat for a child in Nomatter’s circumstances but in spite of her hardships, Thandekile is determined not to let anything stand in the way of her children’s hopes for the future.
“Education is important to me as I know it can make life easier for my children. You can go wherever you want; you can get the job you wish and get a better income and not struggle. That’s why it’s so important to me that my children get a good education.”
“Following Donovan’s passing, my life has been very hard financially since he was the breadwinner. It also affected my ability to earn an income as at times I would be so stressed and too sick to even go out and work. I did not have the means to pay school fees for the children, to buy uniforms and all our other basic needs because I had no source of income.”
Nomatter and Forward walking to school in Zimbabwe Photo Credit: Cynthia R Matonhodze
The village where the children grew up was already hit hard by climate change and rife in poverty. Families like Thandekile’s were already struggling before the pandemic hit.
With your help this Lent, we can help Nomatter and Forward, and many more children like them, get an education so they can have the opportunity to play, learn and build a brighter future.
Thandekile’s main want in life is for her children to learn as much as possible so they can get everything they need and deserve in life.
Zimbabwe’s economy has been undermined by hyperinflation, political instability, drought and poverty, with food & nourishment poverty, energy/power for cooking food, water, access to education and health being the main types of poverty.
The compounded effects of COVID, coupled with high import costs have seen an increase in prices of non-staple food commodities which families like Thandekile’s are feeling every single day.
Since Thandekile’s husband, Donovan, passed away from Covid 19, she has struggled to afford school fees for her children Photo Credit: Cynthia R Matonhodze
Determined to provide for her two children, Thandekile began buying and selling women’s clothes in order to make money.
“My wish is to be able to provide for all their needs, so I hope that my business will grow. My hope is that my children will be able to continue in school and be successful in life.” “Whatever problems you have been through in life, it is important to dust yourself off and move forward, have hope and work hard for your children even if it’s very difficult most of the time.”
