The Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) Church held a child-dedicated service in Emganwini, Bulawayo on Saturday to fight drug abuse.
Emganwini Seventh-day Adventist church district pastor Obadiah Ngwenya told Southern Eye that the service was held under the theme: “There is Peace in the Midst of a Storm”.
He said that 77 children participated and dedicated themselves to God. Said Ngwenya:
Among them were 25 non-Adventists, who were accompanied by their family members.
Child dedication is a service that acknowledges that God is the only one who knows how to safeguard children.
God protects and guides the children and baptises them with the Holy Spirit.
The whole assurance of protection comes from God so that children are protected from all the social ills of this world.
Ward 26 councillor Mpumelelo Moyo commended the church for participating in the fight against drug abuse. Moyo said:
It is important for the church to take a leading role in the fight against drug and substance abuse, and to groom young people to become responsible citizens.
According to the Society for the Study of Addiction (SSA), Zimbabwe’s illicit substance use problem increased dramatically during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Commonly used substances in Zimbabwe include glue, bronclee, mangemba, cane sprit, marijuana, codeine and methamphetamine (crystal meth).
Very high unemployment rates in Zimbabwe, coupled with poverty and despair, have resulted in increasing numbers of youthful citizens also turning to use drugs as a way of entertainment.
According to the Ministry of Health and Child Care, people who have problems with drug abuse can be assisted at the following public as well as private health centres:
In case you have a son, daughter, friend, or relative who has a problem with drug abuse, the following public psychiatric institutions offer help in fighting drug addiction:
1. Sally Mugabe Psychiatric Unit (Harare)
2. Parirenyatwa Annex Psychiatric Unit (Harare)
3. Ingutsheni Psychiatric Hospital (Bulawayo)
4. Ngomahuru Hospital and Half-way House (Masvingo)
The following institutions also offer counselling and rehabilitation services for patients battling drug addiction:
1. Highlands Halfway Home +2638644210999
2. Ruwa Rehabilitation Centre +263273790238
3. Serenity Mind Centre +263716825245
4. Tirivanhu Rehabilitation +263773593014
5. Beatrice Rehabilitation Harare
6. Tariro Rehabilitation Centre, Harare
More: Pindula News