Mwatipedza Community Hall

We agreed to build a Village Hall to be used for various community activities, including:

Running a crèche

Church services

Village meetings

Skills training

Indoor sports

Other indoor activities

Wedding receptions

The village agreed that we will provide labour for the project, as well as materials that can be sourced locally without using money. These include bricks, river sand, pit sand, and ¾ stones. I was tasked to lead initiatives to secure funding for materials that require money, such as cement, brick force, and damp course.

We set an ambitious target to complete the foundation by November 2016 and to hold our end-of-year meeting seated in the hall foundation.

The plan was drawn and approved by the Mutare Rural District Council (RDC). We thank our local Councillor, Alderman Mudehwe, for helping us secure this approval. The RDC has also pegged the plot where the hall will be constructed.

We received a Bill of Materials for the project from Windy Construction, and DST provided costings.

The community has since delivered river sand, pit sand, and ¾ stones required for the foundation. Bricks are also available from a community oven. Various donations have been received to support the project. These funds helped pay for the plan and RDC-related costs. A listed corporate donated $500, which was used to purchase 30 bags of cement, brick force, and damp course. However, more cement is still needed before construction can begin.

We are currently looking for a registered builder to lead the project, as required by the RDC.

The plot allocated for the hall measures 28m x 62m. So far, 116 wheelbarrow loads of ¾ stones and 122 wheelbarrow loads of river sand have been received, with more expected. The RDC is yet to complete pegging.

Windy Construction kindly produced the Bill of Materials for us, and we encourage support for them.

Progress Updates

16 March 2016
As reported in the 5th update on donations and payments:

No new donations were received.

$100 was paid to the RDC, funded through two months’ allowances from the Village Head and other contributions.

8 March 2017
Work on the concrete slab was completed successfully.

7 May 2017
A productive village meeting was held. Key resolutions included:

Production of 40,000 bricks starting 1 July 2017

The village will split into two groups, each producing 20,000 bricks

Each household will contribute one wheelbarrow of sand and one of ¾ stones

Fines will apply to those who do not participate

The target is to complete the superstructure up to window level by December 2017.

Thanks were extended to James Mlambo and family for pledging 10 bags of cement.

5 July 2017
Work on the 40,000 bricks began as agreed. There has been strong community participation and unity.

10 July 2017
Brick production continued, with one half of the village producing 20,000 bricks, after which the second group will produce the remaining 20,000. This approach ensures consistent quality and accommodates limited space.

14 July 2017
The second group began work on their 20,000 bricks.