IT’s better to give someone a fishing rod and teach them to catch fish than giving them fish every day, goes an age-old English adage.

The saying rings true for the people of Magwegwe, Bulawayo, who have been allowed to turn an open space that had become a haven for criminals into a community garden to feed their families and sell the surplus.

The project dovetails with First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa’s empowerment thrust and yesterday she weighed in with maize seed and a variety of vegetable seeds for beneficiaries who include disabled persons and orphans to kick-start the project.

This comes at a time when the First Lady has been traversing the length and breadth of the country teaching people, especially women and youths, about the importance of using their hands to achieve food self-sufficiency and avoid dependency on others.

Residents of Magwegwe North, West and New Magwegwe are expected to benefit from the community garden.

Senator Molly Mpofu, who is the brains behind the community garden, said she came up with idea to complement Amai Mnangagwa’s efforts to empower communities.

In all her projects, the First Lady has a non-partisan approach for the benefit of all citizens, and Senator Mpofu said they were applying the same approach and all members of the Magwegwe community were welcome.

In a speech read on her behalf by Bulawayo Provincial Affairs Minister Judith Ncube at a ground-breaking ceremony for the project where a fruit tree was planted yesterday, the First Lady said she was humbled by the innovative project aimed at uplifting the community.

“It is always refreshing to see people playing a proactive role in bettering their living standards and developments such as this are of great relevance in our respective areas of residence.

“The Magwegwe Community garden, which was founded by Senator Molly Mpofu is a project aimed at empowering and enhancing the lives of the residing citizens,” she said.

Amai Mnangagwa said she was impressed that the project brought on board everyone despite their political party affiliation, religion, background and as a mother, she liked seeing people working together.

She implored people to join hands in initiatives to ensure their families and the vulnerable were well-fed.

“You have put this virgin land to good use by tilling and getting it ready for planting. I have been informed that the garden’s main thrust shall be horticulture.

“The land is segmented with the first being dedicated to the cultivation of herbs in order to assist a lot of ailments that most of us suffer from.

“The second apportionment has been devoted to the cultivation of a whole variety of vegetables and legumes which promote a healthy diet for the surrounding populace.”

Senator Mpofu said the area which has been turned into a garden was once a haven for thieves who waylaid people.

“As women from this Magwegwe community, we decided to utilise the place and came up with idea of community gardening. This was after we had seen the First Lady going around uniting people and uplifting women with empowerment projects.

“We can talk of nutritional gardens set up by Amai in Plumtree, Kanyemba and several other areas. We said to ourselves why can’t we emulate our First Lady and start projects to help us as a community. There is a portion for those who are living with disabilities and the able-bodied will work in this garden and assist the vulnerable. The First Lady has always been saying it is everyone’s responsibility to look after the vulnerable in our communities and we are doing just that,” she said.

“The project is non-partisan and everyone will benefit. We want to thank Amai for the maize seed, tomato and vegetable seed.”

The First Lady also donated maize grain and rice to feed the vulnerable and the community thanked her for the kind gesture.

A member of the garden project, Mrs Vimbai Pasipanodya, thanked the First Lady and promised to work hard.

“We want to cultivate this land productively and show that women are not lazy people. We want to work with oneness going forward,” she said.

A wheelchair-bound resident, Mrs Mandis Sibanda, gave a heart-rending account about how she would sleep on an empty stomach owing to the absence of food, but all that will soon be a thing of the past as a result of the project.

“It is going to help us in terms of providing a source of income and we are very grateful for the donation from the First Lady which will go a long way in alleviating our plight,” she said.