Angel of Hope’s Agric4she and school feeding programmes get boost

Tendai Rupapa

First Lady Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa’s initiatives through her Angel of Hope Foundation and Agric4She programme, have charmed an Australia based organisation, GLOSTA, which has expressed willingness to support the programmes by empowering women through livestock breeding, embryo transfer, animal herd in cattle, both for meat and dairy.

The newly formed women empowerment project also has new breeds for goats and sheep which are crucial in a family.

Under the programme, beneficiaries will receive highly modified animal herds to enhance milk production.

It is not only about bringing external genetics, but also the organisation can work with what is already in the country and scientifically improve the genetics, the First Lady was told.

The programme will also see beneficiaries accessing offspring or dairy cows of good quality genes.

The technology also allows the propagation of more animals over a short period.

Specialising in improving livestock and agricultural performance, the organisation’s livestock sciences division focuses on five key innovation and commercialisation streams.

These include programmes dedicated to conservation and genetic preservation.

Animal genetic resources for food and agriculture encompass the variability of genes, traits and breeds of the different animal species that play a role in food and agriculture.

Highly modified cows and goats can produce more milk and have other desirable traits, such as disease resistance and fertility, hence, the partnership between GLOSTA and Angel of Hope Foundation will be a game changer in the field of women in agriculture and nutrition to kids in hospitals, and through the schools feeding programme.

GLOSTA intend to work directly with the women of Zimbabwe through their Agric4She patron, Dr Mnangagwa.

They said when they visited Zimbabwe, they heard and learnt a lot about AoHF’s empowerment projects, the Agric4She programme and how the mother of the nation was working tirelessly, coming up with initiatives to empower women and youths.

The GLOSTA team includes several of the world’s leading animal and livestock science experts, with extensive experience in research, academia and commercial realisation across the globe.

The Agric4She programme being spearheaded by Dr Mnangagwa encompasses Pfumvudza4She, Livestock4She, Fisheries4She, Horticulture4She, NEAPS4She, and Mechanisation4She, Banana4She, Poultry4She, Fisheries4She, benefiting thousands of women across the country.

In the meeting, Zimbabwean Ambassador to Australia and New Zealand Mr Joe Tapera Mhishi, introduced Amai Mnangagwa and her delegation to the GLOSTA team, giving insight into what the organisation does.

“We thank you for meeting with and welcoming our women empowerment champion, the First Lady, Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa. Amai, this organisation has a passion for advanced livestock genetics.

“They want to work directly with you in supporting your women in farming vision. They take livestock genetics a step higher, where they are focusing on artificial insemination. They want to take this to a higher level. They want to go beyond embryo flushing and go into invitro fertilisation, this has many advantages.

“For me, it’s the rate at which one can propagate animal species, both cattle and goats. From one cow, you are able in a month to propagate as many cows using their technology and there are also other benefits in terms of the disease resistance of the animal species they are bringing to Zimbabwe, and the food convention ratios that come with the animal they are proposing to breed. They are also saying it’s not only about bringing external genetics but they can work with what you have in your country because the system they use helps you to select the genes and be able to identify how best to improve what you already have, which is another positive that comes with the invitro fertilisation project,” he said. GLOSTA founding partner, Mr James Scuderi, highlighted to Amai Mnangagwa the benefits of the project.

“We visited Africa last year, and Professor Verma was with us. His background is in stem cell biology and embryology. Given the interest we have in Africa, particularly Zimbabwe, the GLOSTA advanced herd system was put together as a proposal.

“It’s a herd development programme. It can be applied equally as a technology transfer arrangement to cattle, goats, and sheep. It allows you to accelerate all the natural imitations of natural breeding. It’s not genetically modified. There is no gene editing, there’s no cloning, the team that we’ve got are probably some of the best around the world.

“This brings the world’s best and most integrated technologies and bundles them into one particular package. We understand Zimbabwe is a unique country with a love for livestock production and farming. The people of Zimbabwe are wonderful and I hope we can engage actively and produce results,” he said.

He added that the organisation has experts who did studies in respect of herd growth.

“It is very much related to starting volumes and because the embryos can be gender specific, so effectively we can choose male and female breed specification and also a little bit of climate specificity and there’s some disease control elements in there as well,” he said.

Dr Mnangagwa welcomed the development.

“I am happy with this programme. Women are doing wonders in agriculture. If I start it as the First Lady and Agric4She patron, women will benefit a lot. Women are hard workers and I promise you, this is going to be a success.

“Women bring results and this will come into fruition. We want to also teach those in the rural areas, they should also benefit as we leave no place and no one behind. If you teach these women how to do it, they will yield results. I work with communities, especially women, including widows, youths and young couples,” she said.

Dr Mnangagwa always emphasises the crucial role women play in ensuring food security and nutrition, advocating for their recognition and support in agriculture.

She added that this new project will also help her in her schools feeding programme as children require drinking milk therefore, eradicating diseases.

Under the Agric4She initiative, women receive essential inputs, chemicals, and machinery to enhance their agricultural activities, thanks to their patron.

Amai Mnangagwa also shared the vast work that she is doing back home, highlighting the work that she is doing through her Agric4She programme capturing the imagination of guests.

She said women bore the brunt of challenges in their homes, hence the focus on them in most of her programmes.

Mr Farai Wadyehwata, who is GLOSTA Regional representative, weighed in, expressing his organisation’s keeness to work with Dr Mnangagwa in empowering women in agriculture.

“People, mainly women, will benefit from this initiative, and Amai, we are happy to travel to Zimbabwe at your invitation anytime, and then we can set the ball rolling,” he said.

Another regional representative, Mr Munyaradzi Mugari, said the initiative will benefit a lot of people in Zimbabwe since the majority are into agriculture.

“We think that we can meet all these National Development Strategies by ensuring that communal farmers benefit from this programme. Over 70 percent of our people are in the agricultural sector and if we uplift these people, it means we have uplifted the majority of people in Zimbabwe given the percentage.”

The GLOSTA team further discussed possible areas of collaboration with the mother of the nation through her foundation.

They promised to pay a reciprocal visit to Zimbabwe for exchange programmes.

Dr Andrew Mataruse, who is part of the First Lady’s delegation, said the embryo transfer technology was important.

“There is a trypogen technology which allows us to have an animal that comes in with infection resistance or disease resistance, longevity in terms of the lifespan, increased fertility rates and higher immune yield.

“We know that we have been always used to pure breeds, but with the trypogen pathway they are crossing three animals so the genes that are coming up are strong and genes with a better quality animal that is coming through.

“So what is critical is that with the First Lady’s Agri4She, the programme allows the mother and child that are in the underprivileged society to be able to access the offspring or dairy cows through this programme. The technology allows us to propagate more animals over a short period of time.

“So, I will give you an example, that a heifer is expensive in Zimbabwe. With this technology, we can bring the cost of producing an animal, a dairy animal for instance, and within the scope of that figure, we can actually generate about six cows coming in from that pricey figure,” he said.

“As time evolves, we are going to be having a more ripple effect and more amplification factors. So, now with this programme, the First Lady will be able to reach out to underprivileged households.

There is true benefit in terms of nutritional support for milk, being a protein source, providing us with fat, vitamins, and therefore eradicating things like Kwashiorkor and marasmus in the context of children.

“We also know that it is a very good source of calcium, very important for bone health and growth of children. So, we think that this programme would go a long way. And as we are fighting hunger and providing food security, we think that this genetic programme, three-way gene with embryo transfer, will be a game changer for food security in Zimbabwe.”

Meanwhile, Amai Mnangagwa also met pastors who expressed keenness to partner her Angel of Hope Foundation in assisting the vulnerable groups.

They paid glowing tribute to Amai Mnangagwa for her sterling work in the field of philanthropy.

A documentary detailing Dr Mnangagwa’s breath-taking works and social interventions was beamed giving the world a glimpse into what she is doing for the people of Zimbabwe, mainly women and the girl child.

They paid glowing tribute to Amai Mnangagwa for her hard work. – Herald