By Desire Tshuma
Murehwa – Deputy Minister of Youth, Arts and Recreation Emily Jesaya says a community sports tournament she launched in Goromonzi is not only aimed at identifying and nurturing sporting talent, but also keeping young people away from drug and substance abuse.
Jesaya said the tournament was created to give young people in Goromonzi an opportunity to showcase their sporting abilities while providing them with positive activities that can help them avoid the growing dangers of drug and substance abuse.
She made the remarks yesterday in Murehwa, Mashonaland East, where the Government of Zimbabwe, in partnership with the Chinese Government and UNICEF, launched a China Aid Grant Project aimed at combating the impact of the El Niño-induced drought through improved nutrition, water, sanitation and hygiene, as well as child protection.
The launch brought together senior Government officials, development partners and representatives of the Chinese Government. Among the dignitaries at the event was Mashonaland East Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution Advocate Itai Ndudzo, Deputy Minister of Health and Child Care Sleiman Kwidini and UNICEF Zimbabwe Representative Etona Ekole.
Speaking on the sidelines of the event, Jesaya said the Goromonzi sports tournament was established after she identified the need for young people in the area to have a platform where their talents could be discovered and developed.
“The main reason why I had to come up with the sports tournament is to give Goromonzi a platform where they can be seen and where they can also be taken up by influential teams in the country or clubs,” Jesaya said.
The tournament was launched in early May 2026 and attracted teams from different parts of Goromonzi, including Goromonzi West, Goromonzi South, Goromonzi North and Ruwa.
The inaugural programme featured men’s football, women’s football and netball, while other sporting disciplines were also showcased as part of efforts to expose young people to a broader range of sporting activities.
Jesaya said the initiative was designed to go beyond entertainment and competition, arguing that sport could provide young people with a constructive environment in which to spend their time and develop their abilities. She said keeping young people actively involved in sport could also help them resist peer pressure and stay away from drugs and other harmful substances.
The Deputy Minister said the tournament was therefore part of a broader effort to use sport as a tool for youth development and social empowerment. With drug and substance abuse increasingly threatening young people in communities, Jesaya said providing structured sporting activities could help create an alternative for youths who might otherwise become involved in harmful activities.
She said young people needed opportunities that gave them a sense of purpose, belonging and hope, with sport capable of providing all three while also opening pathways to employment and professional careers.
The initiative is also placing a strong emphasis on the girl child, with Jesaya saying the tournament was deliberately structured to increase girls’ participation in sport.
“We realised that we needed to promote sport for the girl child. The programme has been working well and helping to uplift girls in Goromonzi,” Jesaya said.
The tournament has consequently created opportunities for women’s football and netball teams to participate, while also exposing girls to other sporting disciplines. Jesaya said the objective was to ensure that talented young people from Goromonzi do not remain unnoticed simply because they come from communities outside the country’s major sporting centres. She said the tournament could serve as a talent identification pipeline, allowing promising athletes to be noticed by established clubs and other influential sporting institutions.
The initiative comes at a time when Government is placing greater emphasis on youth empowerment, sport development and measures to address drug and substance abuse among young people. By combining sport with talent identification and youth development, the Goromonzi tournament is expected to provide young people with opportunities to build discipline, teamwork, confidence and leadership skills.
Jesaya said the strong participation witnessed since the launch demonstrated the appetite among young people for organised sporting activities. She said the involvement of communities from Goromonzi West, South and North, as well as Ruwa, showed that the programme had the potential to grow into a wider platform for identifying sporting talent across Mashonaland East.
Meanwhile, the China Aid Grant Project launched in Murehwa is focused on supporting communities affected by the effects of drought through interventions targeting nutrition, water, sanitation and hygiene and child protection. The launch highlighted the importance of cooperation between Zimbabwe, China and development partners in strengthening community resilience and protecting vulnerable groups.
For Jesaya, the message from Goromonzi is that investment in young people must extend beyond conventional academic and economic programmes. Through sport, she said, young people can be given opportunities to develop their talents, build productive careers and, importantly, remain engaged in activities that keep them away from drugs and substance abuse.
The Goromonzi tournament is therefore emerging as more than a sporting competition — it is a youth empowerment initiative designed to identify talent, promote the participation of the girl child and provide young people with a positive alternative to drug and substance abuse.