Source: Bulilima Junior MP pushes for IDs, digital access in rural schools – herald
Mthabisi Tshuma, mthabisimthire@gmail.com
Grassroots leadership is driving change in Bulilima District, with Junior Member of Parliament leading a campaign to ensure rural learners get identity documents early and access digital learning tools.
The 17-year-old Lower Sixth student at Madlambudzi High School also serves as Matabeleland South Junior Minister of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage.
She says her mandate is to take the voices of village children to decision-makers.
Sibanda, who hails from Nswazi Village, is no stranger to leadership. She was Junior Councillor in the 32nd session while at Malalume Secondary School.
She now works alongside other Bulilima junior leaders, including Tokwana High School Form 3 pupil Vikani Mtsamayi, the Junior Chief, and Dombodema High School Form 4 learner Natasha Moyo, the Junior Senator.
Sibanda said her priorities were identified through conversations with learners in her community.
“A lot of young people from our villages have no identity documentation until they reach secondary level, and that is when they are supposed to participate in sporting or other activities. Leadership is not about age but being responsible,” she said.
“By then, many have already missed opportunities. This should be a thing of the past. I want to push that every school should have at least one dedicated day where the Department of Registrar General comes to issue birth certificates and IDs.”
She noted that lack of documents locks learners out of exams, competitions, and social protection programmes.
By raising the issue at junior parliament and district forums, Sibanda hopes to create a system where schools and local leadership work together to ensure no child is left behind.
The Junior MP is also advocating for technology in rural classrooms.
“It is said that we are in a digital world, yet most Bulilima schools do not have technology machines like interactive boards and computers,” she said.
“My target is that by the time I leave office, all Bulilima schools will have interactive boards. Digital literacy must start in rural areas so that our learners compete equally with others.”
Sibanda, who aspires to be a journalist, said she will use her positions to amplify issues affecting young people. She has been engaging headmasters, councillors and traditional leaders in Nswazi and surrounding villages to map learners without documents and schools without ICT equipment.
“If I can help one learner get an ID on time, or one school get a computer, then my being here will have meaning. We are the future, and we must start building it now from our villages,” emphasised Sibanda.
Bulilima District Visual and Performing Arts, Physical Education, Sports and Mass Display Schools Inspector Mr Thabani Masina said the district is confident in the junior leaders.
“On behalf of Bulilima district, I want to wish them well in their mandate of being a voice for other learners in advocating for effective education, health, youth empowerment and community development,” said Mr Masina.
“Their calibre shows they have the capability to measure up to their mandate. When young people lead from the grassroots, they understand the problems first and propose solutions that work for their peers.”
Analysts say junior parliamentarians like Sibanda show how leadership from the grassroots can influence policy. By identifying gaps at village level — missing IDs, no computers, limited exposure — and taking them to provincial and national platforms, they bridge the gap between communities and Government.
For learners in Bulilima, having one of their own speak for them means issues are no longer abstract. A dedicated ID day at school or an interactive board in class directly changes a child’s daily experience.
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