WHAT initially started as a social networking group to keep Zimbabwean women in touch while in foreign lands, has since blossomed into a huge multi-million dollar investment.
The women involved in the huge investment are the faces
behind Qoki Zindlovukazi- a well-known organisation which is changing lives in
Matabeleland.
These women are basically millionaires in South African
rand terms and they have invested in the property sector, farming and energy,
among other sectors.
Qoki was formed in December 2016 by a group of about 30
women initially to help each other invest as they worked abroad.
The women committed themselves and bought their first house
which boosted their confidence in the power of numbers after a seminar a few
months down the line.
After the property seminar which birthed the vision to
invest in immovable property, the women have never looked back and today they
are the pride of Matabeleland and Midlands where they come from.
Now they are more than 5 000 and if an investment
opportunity comes up, it is floated around and those interested invest.
With contributions starting from 20 pounds, the women have
grown from strength to strength and are now owners of properties and businesses
in Zimbabwe and South Africa.
In one of their major projects, 10 Qoki women invested
their savings and bought mansions known as Soho Units in Sandton, Johannesburg,
a multi-million-rand business idea which is flourishing in the neighbouring
country. The mansions are valued at R1,5 million each.
A hundred more in South Africa have been contributing
towards Qoki Villas located in Germiston just to secure decent accommodation
for their families.
In Zimbabwe, Qoki through their projects has secured pieces
of land in Bulawayo for the construction of town houses and the projects are
underway.
The plan is to construct as many town houses in Burnside,
Woodville, Riverside and along Airport Road for their members. The ladies have
also partnered and started a company called Synergy Energy which specialises in
logistics and has trucks and fuel tankers in Zimbabwe.
Qoki ladies have also secured 30 hectares of land to
construct Esigodini Girls College, which was bought by 30 of their members to
meet educational needs of women and girls.
To mitigate health challenges faced by communities in the
region, Qoki opened a health care centre at corner Fife Street and 11th Avenue
in Bulawayo and the clinic offers kidney dialysis, postnatal care, drug and
alcohol rehabilitation and treatment and also offers support for domestic abuse
survivors.
Last year when Bulawayo was battling a cholera outbreak
which was worsened by erratic water supplies, Qoki women supplied affected
residents in Luveve and Gwabalanda with clean water.
Besides property investments, Qoki women are also involved
in farming business.
They have a tomato canning business in South Africa where
they produce ketchup and other tomato products.
Plans are underway to introduce the same concept in
Zimbabwe.
Qoki Zindlovukazi founding leader, Ms Sithule Tshuma who is
from Lupane and is based in the United Kingdom, said the plan is to invest as
much as possible into property and make more female millionaires from
Matabeleland.
“Property was one of the first projects undertaken by Qoki
ZiNdlovukazi in 2017 after the organisation was founded in 2016.
Our first strategy was to help each other earn money for
deposits to buy houses in the United Kingdom and then we moved into buying
houses in Zimbabwe where we used funds raised through contributions to pay off mortgages.
It has been years of hard work as a team and everyone is now seeing the
results,” she said.
The women collaborate with anybody who is passionate about
rebuilding the region and making it great again.
Women can participate in any project depending on their
interests and financial resources.
“Any member of Qoki can identify a need or project that is
of interest to them which is then brought to the table (qoki platform) and
those who are keen to pursue the venture join the group which then takes the
project further,” said Ms Tshuma.
She said the organisation’s main objective is to bring
together women with a common interest to implement a given project.
“In the midst of all that we ensure that we strike a
balance by sharing jokes, teaching each other about things of common interest,
hosting Christmas parties, hosting business workshops, business showers,
supporting each other even during bereavement,” said Ms Tshuma.
She said all members contribute equally to their
investments as they are equal partners depending on location and the specific
project that they are interested in.
Ms Tshuma said even in the construction of townhouses and
villas, all costs are shared equally and members are tasked to contribute a
certain amount to fund the project.
“As women who have spent many years abroad and learned from
other communities about how to restore their communities at home and the
necessity of investment, we have been able to work together as a group in
business.
Within our organisation, we also believe in the potential
of networks to help women with microeconomic ventures succeed. We are naturally
kind and empathetic, and we uphold the Ubuntu attitude that our mothers
instilled in us,” said Ms Tshuma.
She said last week, their parents and relatives toured a
piece of land which was recently bought for the construction of town houses in
Woodville.
“It was refreshing to see our parents view the land where
we will construct our retirement homes because we will not live in the diaspora
forever.
One day we will have to come back home hence the need for
all these property investments that we are engaged in.
In addition, as we grow as women, we continue to give back
to the community and the people who have helped us to become what we are
today,” she said.
Ms Tshuma said she grew up in Lobengula, one of Bulawayo’s
oldest suburbs in the city and her background ignited her passion to empower
those around her.
She said their challenges include time differences as some
members are in the United States, Canada, Australia, Germany and Dubai.
Although many are quick to dismiss that financial
prosperity doesn’t come in numbers where money is involved, Ms Tshuma says
unity in numbers has kept the Qoki members happy and satisfied in all their
endeavours.
Ms Tshuma recently won a Community Development Award at the
Zimbabwe Achievers Awards UK 2021 for founding and leading Qoki whose projects
are changing lives in Zimbabwe especially in Matabeleland.
“Despite the fact that I was already dealing with women from
all over the world on a daily basis, this has helped me broaden my skills and
knowledge and be able to deliver evidence-based practice when playing a role in
rebuilding our community.
I was also honoured to be one of the presenters at Kaizen
Summit, the world’s largest and most influential online gathering of Visionary
African Leaders.” said Ms Tshuma.
She said said through Qoki, women in the diaspora have also
managed to rekindle the spirit of Ubuntu and togetherness which they inherited
from back home in Zimbabwe.
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