Tapiwa Guzha is one of the many Zimbabweans that have ventured beyond our borders seeking greener pastures. He moved to South Africa at the age of 18 to further his education. He specialized in molecular biology and he studied all the way to PhD level. Tapiwa stumbled into the ice cream business. His interest was piqued when he watched episodes of Masterchef where liquid nitrogen was used by contestants to make ice-cream.

Being a scientist himself, Tapiwa was familiar with liquid nitrogen. He tried using it to make his own ice cream and BOOM! Tapi Tapi was born. Tapiwa has since opened an ice cream parlor and he has churned over 600 unique flavors. I won’t lie, some of the flavors sound weird and somewhat unappealing. The top four flavors I personally find weird are masawu, okra, baobab (mauyu) and Matemba (kapenta) and toffee.

Why are we celebrating by the way?

While it’s good that we have so many Zimbabweans doing great in neighboring countries and abroad, one may feel conflicted as to whether the news is good or bad. I think the fact that there are so many people doing well out there AFTER leaving, is a bad reflection of this country. How long will people keep leaving searching for better?

Another much celebrated Zimbabwean is James Manyika, first Senior Vice President of Technology and Society at the Google. Need I mention the 6 Zimbabwean females that won elections in the UK in their respective districts? While we have reason to celebrate because they represent us well, we have to ask ourselves why else we are celebrating. Most of these people leave Zimbabwe looking for better livelihoods and opportunities. Rarely is it because they have excelled here at home and are taking their expertise beyond our borders.

Motivated but mindful

While Tapiwa Guzha represents us because he is Zimbabwean, his achievements are not necessarily our achievements. The same can be said for many other Zimbabweans out there doing well for themselves. Meaning there is an ice cream palour/stand in Cape Town run by Zimbabwean Tapiwa Guzha. However, we do not have an ice cream palour in Zimbabwe that churns out 600 flavors inspired by African tastes and cultures.

While we may be motivated by stories of Zimbabweans doing well for themselves, we need to also be mindful of what it means for us and the environment we live in.

The post South Africa Based Zimbabwean Uses Ice Cream To Challenge Cultural Norms appeared first on Provoker Magazine.

Gogo Katsande’s has managed to support some little boys who come from less privileged backgrounds. The most inspiring thing for me was that she runs most of the academy out of her own pocket.

Some Zimbabwean youths have been able to land massive deals with teams such as Liverpool FC. It is Gogo’s dream that her boys one day reach such heights, but of course, it hasn’t been an easy way up.

Watch a Gogo tells her story:

We definitely need more people like Gogo Katsande to make this world a better place.

The post WATCH: Zimbabwean Granny Changing Football One Orphan At A Time appeared first on Provoker Magazine.

Maximos Kwenda took a very simple problem and decided to solve it. He noticed that many people love sugarcane but do not like the process of peeling its tough skin. So he decided to start a business that addresses that problem by selling already peeled and neatly sliced sugarcane.

Kwenda already supplies 8 outlets in Harare.

View his product below:

Some Zimbabwean are certainly rising above the restraints posed by the country’s economy and creating sustainable businesses. One such citizen was retrenched from his senior manager position at Econet and started a seedling company that now employs 100+ people in the space of 5 years.

What are your thoughts?

Let us know in the comment section below

The post Zimbabwean man making riches with his hustle of peeling sugarcane. Already supplies 8 outlets in Harare appeared first on Provoker Magazine.

One such winning lady is Precious Marange, a woman from the Eastern Highlands. She is a single mom with a passion for cricket and rugby. Precious tries to make a living for her family by working at a factory in her region. Her passion for the two sports, cricket and rugby took her to the national teams for both sports. Imagine that!

How does she manage to do it all?

Watch a day in her life below:

One can only hope that being in the national team pays off for her. Unfortunately, it seems to some that sports are often neglected in Zimbabwe. For instance, the male cricket team had to rely on a donation for something as little as a pair of shoes for each member.

What are your thoughts?

Let us know in the comment section below.

The post WATCH: Inspirational Manicaland single mom applauded for her excellence in national cricket and rugby appeared first on Provoker Magazine.

One such example is Mr Brian Mawoyo who was retrenched by Econet on 27 July 2015. He had been working for Econet for 8 years and had risen to senior manager. Of course these retrenchment issues come unexpectedly and may momentarily set one off the rail. But, a year later, on 27 July 2016 he set up Spinyard Seedlings. The company now employs 120 people and is the largest nursery business in Zimbabwe.

Mawoyo took to social media to celebrate this win and Spinyard Seedlings 5 year anniversary.

Congratulations Mr Mawoyo, you’ve inspired many!

There are many Zimbabweans with very inspirational stories. Some are even managing to fly the nations flag high in the diaspora. For instance, we have covered the story of a Zimbabwean innovator who recently launched his car brand in South Africa.

What are your thoughts?

Let us know in the comment section below.

The post Zimbabwean Success Story: From being retrenched to employing 120 people in just 5 years appeared first on Provoker Magazine.

Of the 8 elected Zimbabweans, 6 of them were female. This is a very rare phenomenon in our own country, to have women take more positions than men in politics. The 6 females and their respective roles are as follows:

1. Amanda Tandi, 47 – Councillor, District Of Knebworth
2. Nicole Nkazimulo Moyo, 23 – Councillor, Peterborough.
3. Lorraine Chirirsa, 45 – Councillor, Northampton.
4. Kate Nicoll, 33. – Mayor: Belfast
5. Alice Mpofu Coles, 56 – Councillor, Whitley, Reading
6. Maggie Chapman, 41, MP for North East Scotland.

We have covered 2 of these candidates in previous articles. One was relating to the youngest candidate on the list, Nicole Moyo. You can read that article here.

The second candidate is Maggie Chapman who insisted on representing her country of origin, Zimbabwe, by saying her oath in Shona. Watch that video here.

The male candidates, who the nation is equally proud of are:

1. Tafadzwa Chikoto, 45 – Councillor, Oakley, Corby
2. Adam Jogee, 30. – Mayor, Harringey.

There are many other Zimbabweans who are not in the political field who are also representing the nation well. We covered the story of a Zimbabwean teenager who was recently signed by UK League one football club, Sunderland. Read about that here.

Another noteworthy story is that of the Zimbabwean comedian who was chosen to feature on UK’s MasterChef 2021. More on that here.

What are your thoughts?

Let us know in the comment section below.

The post 6 Zimbabwean females win elections in the UK appeared first on Provoker Magazine.

A Gweru form one student, Nokuthula Mazula (14), started off her high school years on a high note. She registered along with form four students to write her ZIMSEC O-Level English examinations. Bear in mind that she was only in form one and presumably three years behind other exam candidates in her education.

The pupil, who is a student at St Patricks sat for this English exam and came out with an A. Sources stated that her father, who is said to be the headmaster at the school, wanted to experiment and see whether form four level English could be done by a form one student. No doubt the whole nation now has an answer to that.

If you were thinking that this student aced her examinations by being anti-social and in her books all the time, apparently you’re wrong. Sources around her say the girl had time to play and have fun with friends just like the rest of her age mates.

The nation is certainly filled with pride when reports like this come out. In addition to this amazing report, the Cambridge global examinations board revealed that 4 Best in the World students for different subjects were in Zimbabwe. We covered the details on that one in a previous article you can find here.

What are your thoughts?

Let us know in the comment section below.

The post Form One student produces shocking ZIMSEC O-Level result appeared first on Provoker Magazine.

Unlike Zimsec which is a national examinations board, Cambridge examinations are written globally. Naturally, that means the competition is stiffer. However, despite the competition a Zimbabwean student managed to scoop the title of Best AS- Level Physics student in the world.

James Wakefield, the student in question learnt at St Johns College in Harare. Check out his award below:

Congratulations James!

St Johns College that was caught up in a gay teacher scandal some years ago. We covered that issue in a previous article here.

What are your thoughts?

Let us know in the comment section below.

The post The Best Physics AS-Level Student in the world is from Zimbabwe: Cambridge Examinations Board appeared first on Provoker Magazine.

The aforementioned doctor is Dr Tatenda Shopera, PHD Senior Scientist who played a part in the Pfizer development of the Covid-19 vaccine. Watch below as he gives us insight into his life:

Talk about a manifestation of that statement we’ve all heard, “your current situation does not determine your future!”

Some reports on the Pfizer vaccine have been under review such as the one we discussed in our previous article here.

What are your thoughts?

Let us know in the comments section below.

The post The ghetto youth that made it to Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine research team reveals what it takes! appeared first on Provoker Magazine.

The road runner farmer, Terrence Maphosa has boasted of helping the community as he has managed to help 111 other individuals begin their own road runner farming projects. Speaking to the media Maphosa said:

“There are millions of youths who are passionate and so energetic to do farming. I have been giving people free chicks to start business. I have given strangers 20 or 25 chicks to go and start their own projects. Imagine if we had 1000 other people giving out something, whether in poultry, piggery, or whatever you are doing; empowering other people, empowering the next person, in the next 5 years Zimbabwe would be feeding itself. People have the zeal, but they do not have exposure, funding, and land. Lots of people with knowledge lack exposure and financing.”

This passion to help out the community and his approach to this business was a part of the reason he gained much recognition.

In addition, he has thus far delivered his chickens to every single city in Zimbabwe.

Aljazeera is currently in the process of following his life closely for their upcoming production on the young man. We look forward to watching the story of Maphosa on Aljazeera soon.

What are your thoughts?

Let us know in the comment section below.

The post Aljazeera producing documentary on rural Zimbabwean chicken farmer appeared first on Provoker Magazine.