University graduate ventures into successful goats breeding

Gracious Rumbidzai Shonhai will never forget the day she graduated. She was among the close to 4000 graduates being capped by President Mnangagwa. The unemployment rate in Zimbabwe had reached record figures and chances of getti ng a job were close to nothing.

While others began typing and printing numerous flowery CVs to market themselves with potential employers, Gracious put on her tackies, packed a water bottle into a back pack and began trudging the Lowveld countryside investing the little startup capital she had raised from selling French fries into buying goats from rural farmers.

Great Zimbabwe Times caught up with her soon after she vaccinated her herd at Wayne Farm in Masvingo and this is what she had to say: 'My experience with this project has taught me a lot about business – primarily the reality that we come into this world with one major capital asset – it's called life. This resource comes free from God but everything else is about putti ng your mind and energy into your chosen direction to make things work. I finished my degree programme from Great Zimbabwe University (GZU) at 23 in 2018 and decided to embark on goat farming – I am passionate about entrepreneurship.

Currently I have 71 goats. The first major hurdle to jump over was the project site. I was fortunate enough to be connected to a woman farmer who has 40 hectares located 23 kms from Masvingo. She installed a borehole –making the site livestock friendly. I got into a lease agreement with her and then headed off to rural markets to negotiate with goat farmers for stock. This phase of life was the hardest – navigating Zimbabwean highways with livestock is not easy.

I started off with a herd of just 6 but made sure that every penny I made from my smaller business initiatives was directed into the purchase of goats. There is value in business networking. Networking done properly can lead you to the next million dollar deal. When my herd neared 25, I attended Women Entrepreneurship Day (WED) commemorations at Masvingo Polytechnic. The panelists were drawn from various business experiences.

We had an established businessmen, Mr Solomon Matsa, a banker of note Mr Desmond Ali the Homelink Managing Director and one of the only two women Registrars in Zimbabwe- the GZU registrar Mrs. Sinikiwe Tirivanhu Gwatidzo. As we were having lunch I remember being asked what business I am into and when I declared my enterprise, Mr Matsa immediately indicated he needed a supply of 50 goats for his hotels periodically.

I was excited. I had a market. Having a market was a major boost to my confidence in expenditure and I immediately sourced capital for more goats. I also realized the value of training and I researched on the net extensively for goat shelter designs and appropriate breeding environment. I also develop a very good working relationship with our local animal vet Mrs Gotami. She taught how to vaccinate goats and how to identify types of diseases.

Getting started is not easy, you need a certain leveI of mental blindness to the risks because no matter how neatly you plan some unforeseen developments take you by surprise and you find yourself making every effort to swim to the shore. If you focus on the risks, you may not even set foot outside the door to live life.

Our site is new to goats and an occasional visit by a python is not uncommon. Predators follow plains game but the real satisfaction is going through the occasional losses and still make the decision to stay in the game. I look forward to setti ng up a training Centre to help by absorbing fellow graduates into this direction of life. My life ambition is to be a goat farmer of excellence in Masvingo and