Zanu PF Bread Bakeries 2019

In 2019, following bread shortages in Zimbabwe (caused by the shortage of foreign currency to import wheat and what President Emmerson Mnannagwa said was attempts to profiteer by bread companies) the Zanu PF political party launched an initiative to construct makeshift traditional bakery ovens in every ward in the country.

Women Mixing Dough At Zanu-PF Bakery

Bread from the Makeshift Bakery at Zanu-PF HQ

The party built a model makeshift bread bakery at its headquarters in Harare The bakery at the Zanu PF HQ would be a training facility for party members who would then go and build similar ones in their communities.

The ovens appear made of mud and mud bricks.

Commissioning - July 2019

Zanu-PF party chairperson Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri said they had learned from China how the party could participate in economic activities and that the bread bakery was one such activity.

This is the sole way of ensuring that the party remains in power. Those trained will thereafter start running community bakeries at ward level, thereby dealing with the current bread shortages as well as exorbitant prices being charged for bread, while at the same time empowering our communities.^[1]

Zanu PF Makeshift Bread Bakery In Makonde, commissioned by 2 government ministers in 2019, was closed the next day due to the shortage of bread.

One such makeshift bakery in Makonde, was commissioned by two ministers Small and Medium Enterprise Minister Sithembiso Nyoni and Environment, Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister Prisca Mupfumira commissioned the oven that uses firewood with a capacity to produce about 500 loaves per day.

Response

Zanu-PF was generally criticised as not being serious for putting up mud structures for their bakeries. The party defended its approach saying the majority of its members are in rural areas and needed a simple low-cost model that can easily be built using locally found materials.

First and foremost, this is a Party, not govt initiative so it is divorced from what govt is doing to mitigate against bread shortages. It is good for political parties to move from sloganeering or fasting for mayhem to self help projects. Size of project may not matter.
“Majority of @ZANUPF_Official members are in rural areas. Therefore it is genius for ZANU PF to put together simple low cost models that can easily be built in rural areas using locally found materials. Empowering homes to be self sustainable should not be ridiculed. ^[2]