By Jonathan Mbiriyamveka
HARARE – Ambassador Apphia Nyasha Musavengana has spent years building platforms, hosting summits, and mentoring young women.
But when asked to sum up her entire mission in a single sentence, she did not hesitate.
“When young women in Zimbabwe truly thrive,” she said, “the country will finally unlock its full potential.”
Ambassador Apphia Musavengana, founder and president of Concord for Young Women in Business
It is a powerful closing statement. But what does it actually mean? What does “truly thrive” look like on the ground — in a hair salon in Mbare, a tech startup in Msasa, a farm in Mashonaland?
We took Amb Musavengana’s sentence to 10 young Zimbabwean women from different walks of life.
We asked each of them to finish it in their own words. Their answers reveal the gap between potential and reality — and the future that is waiting to be unlocked.
The Hairstylist: Tariro, 24, Mbare
“When young women in Zimbabwe truly thrive. . .”
“. . . my mother will finally retire.”
Tariro supports her entire family on what she earns braiding hair. She dreams of opening her own salon, but bank loans require collateral she does not have.
“I see women like Apphia on TV, and I think, that could be me if someone just gave me a chance. I don’t need a handout. I need a door. When young women like me thrive, we don’t just buy things — we employ people. My mother has worked in someone else’s kitchen for twenty years. When I thrive, she stops.”
The Coder: Rutendo, 27, Harare
“When young women in Zimbabwe truly thrive. . .”
“. . . we will stop exporting our best brains.”
Rutendo is a self-taught software developer. She has applied for five funding programs in the last year. She was rejected from four and ghosted by one.
“I have friends in Kenya and South Africa who got seed funding for ideas smaller than mine. The difference is not talent — it is infrastructure. When young women truly thrive in Zimbabwe, I won’t have to move to Nairobi to build my company. I’ll build it here, hire here, pay taxes here.”
The Farmer: Nokuthula, 31, Mashonaland East
“When young women in Zimbabwe truly thrive. . .”
“. . .we will feed this nation and export the rest.”
Nokuthula grows tomatoes and peppers on land her grandmother left her. She cannot afford a borehole or a solar-powered irrigation system.
“I lose thirty percent of my harvest to drought every year. Thirty percent. That is food that could be in Harare supermarkets. Young women farmers are invisible. But when we truly thrive — when we get land, water, and market access — we don’t just survive. We feed countries.”
The Recent Graduate: Michelle, 22, Bulawayo
“When young women in Zimbabwe truly thrive. . .”
“. . . my degree will not gather dust under my bed.”
Michelle graduated with a distinction in marketing. She has been job hunting for fourteen months.
“I have sent 200 applications. I have had three interviews. Everyone wants experience, but no one will give me the chance to get it. When young women truly thrive, we are not told to ‘wait our turn.’ We are given the same starting line as young men.”
The Single Mother: Patricia, 34, Chitungwiza
“When young women in Zimbabwe truly thrive. . .”
“. . . my daughter will never hear me say, ‘We cannot afford it.’”
Patricia runs a small catering business from her kitchen. She has six employees, all of them women, all of them mothers.
“I started with one pot. Now I cater for small weddings and church events. But I cannot grow because I cannot afford a commercial kitchen. When young women like me truly thrive, we don’t just survive. We build things that last beyond us. My daughter is eleven. When she is my age, I want her to inherit a company, not a struggle.”
The Artist: Anesu, 26, Harare
“When young women in Zimbabwe truly thrive . . .”
“. . . our art will be valued like imports.”
Anesu paints murals and sells prints online. She says Zimbabwean art is often undervalued compared to work from South Africa or Europe.
“People will pay 500 for a print from Cape Town but bargain me down to 50 for original work. When young women truly thrive, we set our own prices. We decide our own value. We stop apologizing for being ambitious.”
The Social Worker: Lindelwe, 29, Epworth
“When young women in Zimbabwe truly thrive . . .”
“. . . gender-based violence will lose its silence.”
Lindelwe works with survivors of domestic violence. She says economic dependence keeps many women trapped.
“A woman who controls her own money leaves faster. She says no louder. She protects her children better. When young women truly thrive — financially, emotionally, socially — abuse loses its power. That is not just economics. That is survival.”
The Cross-Border Trader: Faith, 33, Beitbridge
“When young women in Zimbabwe truly thrive…”
“. . .the border will become a bridge, not a battlefield.”
Faith travels between Zimbabwe and South Africa three times a month, trading in clothes and household goods.
“Every trip, I deal with harassment, bribes, and men who think I am smuggling because I am a woman. I am not smuggling. I am working. When young women truly thrive, we move goods as freely as men do. And we are respected, not suspected.”
The University Lecturer: Dr. Nomusa, 41, Gweru
“When young women in Zimbabwe truly thrive . . .”
“. . .the classroom will reflect the boardroom.”
Dr. Nomusa teaches business studies at a university. She says she watches brilliant female students graduate with top marks — then disappear.
“They get married. They get discouraged. They get told to be ‘realistic.’ When young women truly thrive, my best students do not become someone’s assistant. They become someone’s CEO. And they hire other women.”
Finally, we gave Musavengana the chance to finish her own sentence again — this time, with the weight of all the other answers behind her.
“When young women in Zimbabwe truly thrive . . .”
“. . . the country will finally unlock its full potential. But here is what I have learned: thriving is not waiting. Thriving is building anyway.
“Thriving is the woman who starts a business with no capital. The woman who mentors someone else even when she is struggling herself. The woman who shows up to a summit in Harare even though she almost stayed home.”
She leans forward.
“Zimbabwe will not be unlocked by a policy or a president alone. It will be unlocked by thousands of young women deciding, every single day, that they are enough. That is what thriving looks like. And it is already happening. You just have to look closely.”
Musavengana’s vision for Concord in ten years includes leadership hubs, business incubation centers, and mentorship programs across Africa. She talks about a book, bigger summits, and continental collaborations.
But the real story is already being written — in a hair salon in Mbare, a tomato farm in Mashonaland East, a kitchen in Chitungwiza. Ten women, ten sentences, one unfinished dream.
When young women in Zimbabwe truly thrive, the country will finally unlock its full potential.
The key is already in their hands.
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