This essay utilizes the Zimbaqua mine as a case study of a concrete attempt (although on a small scale) to empower women and minimize gender disparities in post-independence Zimbabwe's mining sector. To what extent can the experiences of Zimbaqua women be interpreted as being central to their struggle for gender equality and against the restrictive and stifling patriarchal structure of the general Zimbabwean society? How far does this mine’s approach to employment engage with broader decolonization efforts that persist well beyond the formal conclusion of political colonization in 1980?  I argue that, while some can view the mine as representing a small fraction of the larger systemic changes needed, Zimbaqua is a step towards challenging gender stereotypes and promoting economic empowerment for women. By providing stable employment and fostering a supportive community, it helps women gain social and economic independence and affords them agency at both familial and societal levels. This independence is a crucial component of any attempts towards establishing gender equality. To understand the issue of gender imbalances in the present day mining sector, one may have to have an appreciation of the positionality and roles of women in pre-colonial Zimbabwean economy and society.

Gender roles in pre-colonial Zimbabwe: A brief overview

Scholarship on pre-colonial Zimbabwean society generally concurs that both men and women played important economic roles both within and outside the household. As concerning livelihoods, sustenance and even accumulation, both men and women were present. Writing about the highly agricultural 1870s pre-colonial Shona society, Schmidt notes well-defined division of labour. In the peasant activities, men were largely responsible for clearing the fields in preparation for the crop planting season. This involved the onerous tasks of removing tree stumps and overgrowth from the fields and turning the soil with hoes. On the other hand, women were involved in the actual farming tasks, such as crop planting, weeding, and harvesting, which were equally arduous.[3]   

While agriculture was the mainstay of the pre-colonial Zimbabwean society, gold mining was also a significant economic activity. It was usually carried out during non-agricultural periods of the year, that is, during the pre- or post-rainy season, or during droughts when normal agricultural activities could not be conducted.[4] Women, men, and children partook in both alluvial and shaft mining. They dug steps into the sidewalls of the shafts, hauling the earth to the surface hand-to-hand in wooden bowls.  The soils and quartz rocks were manually ground to powder from which gold was extracted through washing in rivers and streams.[5] Schmidt demonstrates that women were at the core of these processes, particularly the on-surface grinding and washing of the soils.[6] Based on the above evidence, one could conclude that women were not mere observers in economic processes but were active participants in different economic sectors of pre-colonial Zimbabwe, including the labour-intensive mining.  

The colonization of Zimbabwe and shifting gender roles

Zimbabwe was invaded and then colonized by mainly British fortune hunters who were led by Cecil John Rhodes and his British South Africa Company (BSAC) in 1890.[7] Their main motivation for colonization was the quest for a second gold reef of a magnitude similar to the one discovered in South Africa’s Witwatersrand region in the late 1880s.[8] Once colonialism was established, rigid binaries were imposed, not least around the perceptions of gender and its social structure. This colonial invasion brought a Western/British demeanour on the societal positions of men and women, respectively. British colonialism introduced the concept of the Victorian woman. 

Simplistically, but largely true, the colonialists reportedly believed, and reshaped the society to the effect that, women were to remain in the private domain, or “in the kitchen,” and were expected to be submissive to men and to live under their instruction, both at family and societal levels.[9] This idea was not only limited to white/colonial women, but also African women. Every woman was to exist within the expectations of the colonial administrators and fulfil the vision of women’s expected role in Zimbabwean society. For instance, colonial education programmes differed for girls and boys. Girls were channelled into subjects that fitted particular Western gender norms and ideologies.[10] They, for example, were likelier to learn household science than agricultural or industrial practices; ideas of women as housewives dominated education systems; and women’s place in studies involving mining and other industrially related jobs was peripheral if not non-existent.[11] This contributed to the image of a stereotypically passive woman whose main role was no more than tending to her family and participating in social activities such as church and women’s clubs. 

The challenges of women in post-colonial Zimbabwe

Soon after gaining independence in 1980, the new Zimbabwean government and the ruling party, the Zimbabwe African National Union Patriotic-Front (ZANU-PF), publicly recognized the crucial role African women played in the liberation struggle and in society. The ZANU-PF government advocated for and designed new laws, policies and programs to ensure that women reaped the benefits of independence because they were a vital societal pillar. These initiatives aimed to promote gender equality and empower women in the new Zimbabwean society.[12] Major pro-women strides were made in education, health, social and legal protection, among other spaces. For example, the 1982 Legal Age of Majority Act (LAMA) represented a significant shift in the legal landscape by granting women full jural rights. Concurrently, organizations such as the Zimbabwe Women's Resource Centre and Network (ZWRCN), founded in 1990, emerged to address gender issues through research, documentation, advocacy, and the dissemination of information.[13] However, these 1980s advancements towards gender equality were undone beginning by the 1990s social, political, and economic challenges. The impact of phenomena such as increased poverty, unemployment, droughts, HIV-AIDS, among others, triggered disruptions of livelihoods, political violence, and domestic violence. All this converged to disproportionately affect women.[14]  

While perceptions changed after independence, patriarchal beliefs have endured but to hinder women’s capacity to advance in male-dominated sectors of the economy and politics. Patronising statements praising women's roles as mothers and wives entrenched the idea that women’s place and roles were at home and to raise children; educational and professional ambitions were for males.[15] The restrictive nature of the Zimbabwean society in this context can be demonstrated through the cultural, spiritual and ritualistic mining sector. Myths and taboos in mining environments of Zimbabwe dictate that women should not work in underground mines as they would bring bad luck. The men say that in the presence of women the mine would collapse, or the gold vein would disappear.[16] This is a microcosm of the many obstacles’ women continue to face due to gender inequality in political, social, and economic spheres in the post-independence and post-2000s eras. While the situation has begun to change in terms of education, employment opportunities, economic and business opportunities, among other things, women are still being significantly disadvantaged for being women. In the mining industry, they still struggle for jobs, livelihoods, and overall dignity. Hence the small space they successfully claim, as at Zimbaqua Mine, is celebrated. Mining, which has become a major source of income for millions of ordinary people in the country, particularly with the growth of artisanal and small-scale mining, involves women who work on riverbeds.[17]  

The formation of Zimbaqua Mine

In an interview with the New York Times, Patrick Zindoga, a co-founder of Zimbaqua, said that upon starting the mining operations in 2019 in Karoi, the key aim was obvious – to establish a profitable business enterprise. But he believed that beyond the profit motive, this mining venture was an opportunity to empower women, who had for long been utterly dominated by men. He faced questions from local men regarding the decision to employ women for the mining jobs, rather than the men who had traditionally dominated this sector.[18] The reasoning of these men was multilayered. Since they head families and were responsible for the welfare of their wives and children, they deserved to get the jobs; the women are physiologically not strong enough to undertake mining work. Therefore, the business was exposing itself to inefficiencies and operational risks. Women were not mentally wired to solve problems that would emerge from sophisticated industrial and mining enterprises. 

This characterization of women as weak and incapable reflects the Zimbabwean society’s deeply patriarchal and masculine demeanour. Zindoga has other ideas. To him, giving women jobs of this nature is advantageous as women tend to be “more responsible” both at work and at home. He reasoned against the men: “If we give the women a job, we know you are going to eat every day, and these women are more trustworthy than you fellas.”[19] While Zindoga’s comments were intended to celebrate and acknowledge women’s qualities, they also exposed his own gender stereotyping.  By presenting women as inherently more responsible than men, he perpetuated traditional views on gender traits. It is these socio-cultural positions that limit opportunities for women and reinforce societal biases rather than promoting true gender equality based on individual merit.

At the same time, his policy has created clear opportunities for women, Mrs. Anatolia Mapfumo, a worker at Zimbaqua Mine told BBC, News: that “we were oppressed, we were told that mining is a job left mostly for men, but we have realised that as women, we can competently take part in mining.”[20] Other women working at Zimbaqua Mine testified that, after they got employed, they could contribute financially to their families. Some single or unmarried women confirmed their improved circumstances, pointing to their ability to pay their children’s school fees, settle hospital bills, and buy food and other household necessities.[21] One could argue that, despite the Zimbabwean society's patriarchal nature, Zimbaqua Mine is a spark in the dark. It exemplifies how women’s empowerment can impact and transform families and societies. But crucially, how it is possible for the Zimbabwean society to change gender perceptions and stereotypes that keep women in the bondage of patriarchy and masculinity.

Conclusion

Clearly, Zimbaqua Mine is a site of social transformation. It is an example of small efforts at the economic and social empowerment of women in Zimbabwe. It demonstrates that while the process is slow, the pillars of patriarchy and misplaced masculinity are chipping away. This is a challenge not only to both African and Victorian cultural and traditional gender structures, but, considering the underlying assumptions and frameworks, also a contribution to the decolonial project. Indeed, the challenge to ideas that women belong to the kitchen, are meant to tend to the family, and should live under the instruction of men, is a notable instance of the practical decolonization of gender roles.