By Yemurai Tembo
A campaign held at a Northcot secondary school in Mt Hampden has sparked renewed calls for greater support for boys, with advocates warning that silence, social pressure and rising drug abuse are leaving many boy children vulnerable.
The event, led by boy child advocate Nthokozo Gudu under the banner “What About the Boy Child?”, brought together learners and organisations for discussions on the challenges boys face and the need for spaces where they can speak openly about their struggles.
Gudu said her decision to champion the welfare of boys was shaped by what she had seen in her own family.
“I have seen the problems that my two brothers face, and that motivated me to stand for the boy child,” she said.
She said conversations around children’s empowerment should not leave boys behind.
“Usually, the boy child is not seen. While we are empowering the girl child, we forgot to ask — what about the boy child?” said Gudu.
In her address, she urged learners to think more deeply about the pressures boys face while growing up, saying some harmful behaviour seen in men often begins when they are still young and unsupported.
“Have you ever asked yourselves why men are always seen as perpetrators? It starts when they are still boys,” she said.
Gudu encouraged boys to reject silence and seek help when facing emotional, social or personal difficulties.
“You should not be silent. Boys must have safe spaces to talk, to feel, and to ask for help,” she said.
She said the campaign was not meant to compete with efforts to empower girls, but to ensure that both boys and girls receive the support they need.
“This is not about erasing the girl child conversation, but completing it. Both boys and girls need empowerment,” she said.
The event also turned attention to drug and substance abuse, with learners chanting “Siya guka, siya mutoriro” in a call for boys to stay away from harmful substances increasingly affecting young people in Zimbabwe.
Among the organisations represented were Youth Talk from the University of Zimbabwe, Occupy the Streets, Mufaro and Soleil Levant, all of which joined the discussions on the welfare of boys.
Youth Talk stressed the importance of supporting boys’ mental and physical health, including through proper nutrition, healthy lifestyles and open conversations.
SADC Youth Parliamentarian, Founder and Director of Mkundi Foundation and Disability Rights Advocate Ian Vambe also addressed learners, encouraging them to break barriers and resist social limitations.
The discussions left students and teachers calling for more platforms that focus on the needs of boys, as concern grows that their challenges are often ignored until they show up in harmful behaviour, emotional distress or substance abuse.
