Quote of the day from The Dish:

“In French, one can say Je suis seul (I am alone) or Je me sens seul (I feel alone), but nothing as baldly distressing as ‘I am lonely’ or ‘I am lonesome.’ Or, even worse, ‘I am a loner.’ My first poems were often about loneliness. My father was a military man and my brothers were athletes, so I was always looking for a different way to be a man. To look inward and explore the darker corners of the soul is one of the functions of the lyric poem. I think immediately of Hopkins, whose poems I love. I hate having to apologize for, or defend, inwardness. It was the American poet Marianne Moore who said that solitude was the cure for loneliness, but if I spend too much time alone, I am called égoïste, or selfish. Surely, it is impossible to be a writer without being égoïste,” – Henri Cole.

Work in and for Zimbabwe. Help grow our nation. Check out the vacancies below. If you’d like to receive this sort of information, as well as civic and human rights updates, by email each week drop us a note saying “subscribe” to info [at] kubatana [dot] net

Please note that the job vacancies we carry are related to the NGO and civil society sectors only.

Director, Ecumenical Peace Observation Initiative in Zimbabwe
Deadline: Close of Business on 21 December 2012

The Zimbabwe Heads of Christian Denominations (ZHOCD) comprising the Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe, The Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops’ Conference and the Zimbabwe Council of Churches seek a suitably qualified person to be Director for its Ecumenical Peace Observation Initiative in Zimbabwe (EPOIZ).

EPOIZ Director Responsibilities
-Provide oversight, monitor and co-ordinate EPOIZ work
-Plan EPOIZ work in consultation with Justice & Peace departments of the three ecumenical umbrella bodies (EFZ, ZCBC & ZCC)
-Supervise programme officers and other EPOIZ staff
-Conduct research and advise EPOIZ Board on relevant action
-Facilitate regional and international advocacy by ecumenical bodies and ensure accreditation with relevant regional bodies
-Identify, negotiate and liaise with development partners
-Represent EPOIZ in meetings and engage government on national peace-building issues
-Report to, and advise, the ZHOCD Executive on the performance of the organization
-Any other duties as assigned by the ZHOCD Executive.

Required Qualifications
-A Masters Degree from a recognised university in a relevant field
-Five years experience in peace-building and conflict transformation or a related field
-Detailed knowledge of the peace and conflict transformation dynamics in Zimbabwe and the Southern Africa region
-A professional qualification and not less than two years experience in middle or senior management
-Excellent analytical, organizational and computer skills; skilled in MS Office including Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint
-Experience of working with ecumenical bodies

Salary and Benefits
Salary and benefits will be commensurate with skills, experience and prevailing market trends.

Interested and qualified persons are invited to submit their applications via email, together with a cover letter and detailed Curriculum Vitae that includes the names and contact details of three traceable references, with reference ZHOCD EPOIZ 12/12 in subject line, to: The Executive Secretary, HOCDZ, email: epoizim [at] gmail [dot] com

Administrative Officer: United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)
Deadline: 23 December 2012

If you are a committed, creative professional and are passionate about making a lasting difference for children, the world’s leading children’s rights organization would like to hear from you. For 60 years, UNICEF has been working on the ground in 190 countries and territories to promote children’s survival, protection and development. The world’s largest provider of vaccines for developing countries, UNICEF supports child health and nutrition, good water and sanitation, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, exploitation, and AIDS.

Vacancy Announcement No. Zim/2012:35
NOB Level
Based in Harare
Fixed Term Appointment Post

Purpose of the Job
The incumbent is responsible for the delivery of timely, efficient and cost effective UNICEF funded administrative services for the UNICEF Zimbabwe Country Office and management of administrative staff. Ensures the Office’s administrative operations and services are in compliance with UNICEF administrative policy, procedures, regulations and rules.

Major Tasks to be accomplished
-Responsible for correct and consistent application of policies and procedures in administrative functions.
-Responsible for all office renovations, maintenance and repair of equipment and general cleanliness of complex.
-Ensure the security of office premises, through assessment of security needs, attending Security meetings, arranging fire drills and ensuring Minimum Operating Security Standards (MOSS) and Minimum Operating Residential Security Standards (MORSS) compliance.
-Procure administrative goods, stationery and equip in liaison with the procurement section and ensure adequate office supplies for smooth program delivery at all times.
-Supervision and management of contractual arrangements with suppliers of goods and services, to ensure that the terms and conditions of all contracts are being adhered to by the suppliers of goods and services.
-Supervises the timely and organized delivery, collection, registry, reproduction and courier of correspondence, documents, pouch services and administrative supplies, provided internally or through a contractor.
-Brief and assist arriving and departing staff on administrative procedures and requirements, (i.e. shipment and insurance of personal effects, liability claims, as well as in identification, arrangement and selection of staff housing).
-Responsible for office allocation and installation of new staff members both locally and internationally recruited.
-Organizes the reconciliation of Property, Plant & Equipment ((PP&E) asset data with office records to ensure physical count taken is complete and identifies discrepancies for corrective action.  Prepares required reports on UNICEF office premises and equipment (PP&E) for UNICEF Headquarters.
-Keep Administrative Specialist abreast of potential problem areas, and identify and recommend solutions.

Qualifications and Competencies
-University degree in Public Administration, Business Administration or other related disciplines
-Two years of practical professional work experience in the field of general office administration, especially in the areas of transportation management, travel, customs and protocol arrangements
-Demonstrable proficiency in computer application packages
-Good communication and organizational skills
-Ability to work in a multicultural environment.

If you have experience of working in a similar capacity, meet the above profile and want to make an active and lasting contribution to build a better world for children, send your application letter together with curriculum vitae quoting vacancy notice number to the following address.

Human Resources Manager
(Vacancy Notice Zim/2012:35)
UNICEF, 6 Fairbridge Avenue,
P O Box 1250
Belgravia, Harare

Or email: hararevacancies [at] unicef [dot] org

Only short listed candidates will be contacted.

UNICEF is committed to gender equality in its mandate and its staff. Well-qualified candidates, particularly women are especially encouraged to apply.

Mary Banda (aged 80) came to Zimbabwe in the 1960s from Malawi for ‘greener pastures’ with her now deceased husband. She is one of those old sweethearts who wax lyrical about the “good old days,” only too happy to reminisce about “how things were better when we were growing up,” a life story she gladly tells anyone who will listen. She says they had five children but all are deceased and she is left with grandchildren and great grandchildren all of whom live elsewhere. She stays with lodgers, and since she cannot go to the borehole by herself she has to rely on their benevolence for water. “But they also have their own needs,” she says referring to her tenants who have a young child. When water “finally arrives” she tries to stock up. She is old school and knows Zimbabwe like the back of her hand. She says she is disturbed by the water problems and “someone must have done something for the rains to have disappeared in the country.”

Simba Dube (aged 36) is a vendor at Machipisa shopping centre. There is a public toilet just behind his stall where he and a number of women sell vegetables. The toilet hasn’t been functioning for years now and is under lock and key. But he says that this has not stopped folks from shitting on the toilet’s doorstep. It is symbolic perhaps: the logic seems to be, “this is a public toilet and we will shit here even if it is locked!” There are a number of public toilets in the suburb but Dube says none are functioning. The story is the same everywhere: they are all littered with faecal matter outside their entrances. It is worse for the vendors, he says, as the convenience of a public toilet is no longer there and he has to rush home every time he wants to answer the call of nature. “It has now become like a landline (telephone). I can only answer the phone at home and nowhere else,” he quips.

Zenzo Moyo (aged 33) is a kombi driver in Bulawayo CBD. His kombi rank is at TM hyper, one of Bulawayo’s busiest commuter omnibus ranks. Drivers, touts and commuters previously used the public toilets at TM Hyper but now, because of the water shortages, the loos are under lock and key. What is now available are pay toilets, at R5 per visit. “That’s money I cannot afford,” Moyo says. “It means my tout also has to dip into the day’s takings to use the toilet and there is no telling how many times one may want to use the loo,” he says matter-of-factly. Typical of these chaps known for all sorts of adventures and misadventures, they have turned alleyways into latrines, creating an odour the Devil would be proud of. “What do they (the municipality) expect us to do? Paying to use a toilet for me is like paying to drink water,” he says, expressing a common sentiment.

Jairos Ngwenya (aged 29) is a cleaner at a cocktail bar. Folks never seem to run out of cash, they have money to burn as they patronise the joint everyday of the week and business is brisk. But this comes at a price for Ngwenya. No running water for days on end means the pub is also affected, and the laws of necessity have meant even without running water, the pub still remains open. Just because there isn’t any water doesn’t mean the patrons don’t shit, and Ngwenya knows this painful truth is a part of the job. “It’s a tough call anyway, expecting tipplers not to piss or shit,” he says rather grudgingly. He has even found human waste on urinals after some drunk defecated where others piss. “I wonder what time they do this,” Ngwenya muses. I jokingly suggest that maybe one patron stands guard by the door to stop others from entering while his friend shits by the urinals? He laughs: “That’s possible.”

Marko Phiri and Chumile Jamela writing for Kubatana.net

More stories, and photographs here

A press statement from Rooftop Promotions:

Police in Gweru Monday banned three performances of the play The Coup which is currently touring the country.

This is the second time that the law enforcement agents have banned the play. Police in Bindura were the first to place a ban on the play stating that it was “political”.

A request for clearance of the shows was sent on November 22 and when the team arrived in Gweru on Monday afternoon to prepare for the performance they were informed that the show was not cleared.

The reason given was the Police Internal Security Intelligence officer Marengere wanted to first view the recording of the play before he can issue the clearance.

Marengere wanted to perform the duty of the Censorship Board which goes through the content of any artistic work before they issue a certificate. The duty of the police is to maintain peace and order during public performances and not to censor artists.

The play was supposed to be performed at Lounge Bar on Monday at 5:30pm followed by another performance at Fairhill Farm on Tuesday at 1 pm and the last show at the Midlands Hotel at 5:30pm.

On Sunday the play was successfully performed at Amakhosi Cultural Square without any incidence. Over 70 people watched the play in Bulawayo.

“We are deeply worried by the continued suppression of artistic freedom and expression by the police who in this case are not the authority over any artistic work. The very same police force operating under the same Zimbabwean laws allowed the play to go on in Bulawayo.

It is high time that artists in this country unite and speak in unison against this unwarranted interference by the police. We will continue lobbying the Police General Headquarters to issue a generic clearance letter that covers all the provinces in the country,” said Daves Guzha