Zimbabwe must not abandon its children at 18

THE announcement that Zimbabwe is developing a national aftercare policy for young people leaving orphanages and children’s homes deserves genuine commendation.

For too long the country has operated on a cruel and thoughtless arithmetic in which a child turns 18 on a Tuesday and is, by Wednesday, expected to have become a fully formed, self-sufficient adult with no institutional memory of what came before. The Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare ministry, through officials such as Totamirepi Tirivavi, has completed consultations in all 10 provinces, with the Harare Metropolitan engagement marking the close of that process.

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