New Year’s message to women from the First Lady

I greet you all womenfolk as we enter the year 2025.

As the year ends, I would like to appreciate and recognise the important roles that women play as mothers.

As mothers, we have a God-given role to administer and look after our families. Our husbands, children, extended family and all those in our care require that we be strong and resolute to foster positivity, uprightness and respect.

We are mothers first before anything else and motherhood is defined by love, care, guidance and teaching to nurture sons and daughters of Zimbabwe. 

Drug and substance abuse is rearing an ugly head in communities, robbing children of their future.

It has often led to sickness, injuries and death, while in some circumstances it has triggered crime.

As a mother, a woman, and the First Lady of our nation, Madzimai ndinoti ngatirambei tichisimbisa vana kuti vafambe mugwara rakanaka and continue the fight to keep our children and all those in our care away from drugs.

Our children need to occupy their rightful places as children and focus on their schoolwork for a brighter future.

Let’s follow the dictates of the Bible when raising our children, bearing in mind what the book of Proverbs says in chapter 22 verse 6. “Train up a child in the way he should go: And when he is old, he will not depart from it.”

Those of our children who drop out of school due to pregnancy must be given a second chance and return to school. Government has done its part and made sure all hope is not lost and ours sanaAmai is to encourage the children to do good. Taking children for prayers and teaching them to honour God is proper. 

We say not to crude, coarse and unpolished language. We need good morals and respect from our children.

Regular family talks and openness are a requisite in today’s world.

As women, we are pillars of the community and the soul of the family, and we are divinely equipped to influence children in the fear of the Lord, thereby making a wholesome and substantial contribution to human society.

Semadzimai, we share the same dreams for our children, the same hopes for a prosperous future and the same love for our beautiful nation.

It is essential, as mothers, that we promote good communication with our spouses to curb discord which largely manifests through domestic violence.

As such, we must always candidly speak against social ills such as Gender-Based Violence.

I also implore you to lead exemplary and dignified lives, shunning promiscuity but respecting the marriage institution. Always remember to be submissive to your husbands as unto the Lord like what the Bible says in Ephesians 5: 22.

When it comes to friendships, let’s be associated with women of valour.

Madzimai, let us continue to work hard using our hands. Let’s showcase that we are in our space. Be economically empowered and remember the path to success is often paved with challenges, but it is through hard work, perseverance, and commitment to learning that you will rise above any obstacle.

Let us all be united as women, bearing in mind that each one of us brings unique perspectives. Let us listen to one another, learn from each other, and build bridges that will make us all successful.

Let’s not forget to carry the spirit of spreading love to the needy and the vulnerable in our communities.

Let us sow the seed of love, unity, caring for one another, and assisting the elderly. 

Throughout last year, it was also a profound joy and a deeply enriching spiritual journey working alongside women from various churches and sectors in several programmes.

Let us continue supporting one another, nurturing bonds that transform our homes, communities, and the nation at large. 

From my heart to yours Happy New Year, and may our families remain the guiding light of Zimbabwe’s future.

I wish you a productive, prosperous and blessed 2025.

God bless you all!