Vulnerable Couple’s Sigh of Relief

BULAWAYO – Fred and Maureen, a couple in their late 60s, are beneficiaries of ZDDT’s Business Social Credit Scheme (BSCS), after having gone for several years without a decent meal.

The couple, discovered by a ZDDT staffer, who have been suffering in silence in the shadows of society, are an example of Zimbabwe’s impoverished pensioners.

Fred, an ex-railwayman, has been trying to pick up casual jobs to survive, but to little or no avail as he is now way above 60, the age of retirement.

Maureen, who had been a pre-school teacher for 50 years and is disabled as the result of a dog attack on her and a pre-school child she was accompanying, has not been able to fend for herself and her mentally disabled son, who is currently hospitalised at Ingutsheni Hospital.

ZDDT provided the couple with groceries and assistance and advice on looking for a permanent source of income.

BSCS is aimed at bringing relief to the disadvantaged and is a key element in the Trust’s social responsibility programme, drawing the local business fraternity closer to the community.