Main Campus was a hive of activity last week as Bindura University of Science Education hosted the First Lady’s Mashonaland Central Provincial Traditional Cookoff competition which saw students and professional chefs showcasing their traditional culinary dishes. The cookoff is the brainchild of the nation’s First Lady Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa and is meant to promote traditional dishes in Zimbabwe and the globe.
The competition was held under the theme, “Extending Cuisine Zimbabwe Traditional Beyond Boundaries” and the Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Industry, Hon. Barbara Rwodzi represented the First Lady as the guest of honour.
Hon. Rwodzi congratulated the First Lady for taking traditional gastronomy to the world.
“United Nations Tourism honoured Dr Mnangagwa for being the first African First Lady to take African traditional cuisine to the world stage. They gave her 100 scholarships for Zimbabwean culinary students to study abroad in Spain as an appreciation token for her ingenuity, dedication, and hard work in promoting gastronomy tourism. They, since 2023, refer to our First Lady as the leading African gastronomy champion.”
She added, “Because of Dr. Mnangagwa’s hard work, Zimbabwe will host the first ever Africa Gastronomy Forum in our Tourism Capital, Victoria Falls on July 26-28, 2024.”
Hon Rwodzi encouraged young people to be proud of their heritage as it defines who they are. She applauded BUSE for developing products from local fruits such as Masawu juice, yoghurt, jam and tincture.
“When you host visitors, show them the indigenous fruits and serve them our traditional meals because that is who we are. I am happy that the University uses indigenous fruits such as masawu and tamarind to make juices, jam, sweets and many other things. I commend the University staff and students for such heritage-based innovations,” she said
Speaking at the same event, the Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science and Technology Development Prof. dr. Amon Murwira said it wasn’t by mistake that Mashonaland Central Province was endowed with the flora and fauna it has.
“The Universe is not chaotic. Everything is by design. God gave us what we have in Mashonaland Central Province to live off of it. Trying to live off of imported products is not only expensive but also shows confusion in people’s thinking. Heritage is what God has given us to enjoy. Traditional foods are our heritage and they are tailor-made for our community and its health needs,” said Prof Murwira.
BUSE’s Vice Chancellor Prof Eddie Mwenje thanked the First Lady Dr Mnangagwa for her visionary leadership in traditional gastronomy and declared the University’s desire to promote rural industrialisation by using indigenous flora and fauna to produce innovative products.
Two chefs from the BUSE’s catering staff – Future Tachiona and Mirriam Zuze – won best runner-up and will represent the Province at the national finals which will be held in Mutare in May.
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