# Vignette 10: Zimbabwe's cross-border traders
When COVID-19 disrupted cross-border trade in Zimbabwe in September 2021, UNDP's Accelerator Lab began immersing themselves in the Victoria Falls community to understand how the crisis affected women traders' livelihoods.[\[1\]](#endnote-1) The team first assessed the local context, including the use of Ndebele and Tonga languages and cultur, which are essential for meaningful community engagement. These languages are predominantly used in Victoria Falls, Matabeleland North Province.
The team recruited local volunteers who spoke these languages and understood the cultural context, particularly important given the area's historical tribal tensions. "The tribes within this area, Matabeleland Province, sometimes feel like they're the minority," Sharleen Moyo, Head of Solutions Mapping explains. "So what we tried to do for them to open up was to look for volunteers who understood the language and context of their culture to help them feel safe in expressing some of the challenges they were facing."
By employing deep listening and observation at specific trade market hubs, the team identified various layers of challenges faced by women cross-border traders. Because of the border closures and strict travel guidelines during Covid-19, border passes could no longer be used, and this led to women traders facing expensive passport application fees, as a passport was the only recognized document for crossing the border. In addition to this, the women traders had the cost of COVID-19 tests that expired after 48 hours, and sometimes they had to pay bribes and experienced gender-based violence at border crossings.
The team changed how they engaged with the community to meet their preferences and needs better. The traditional methods often used by development agencies proved cumbersome for cross-border traders. Holding meetings to discuss issues meant traders would lose a day of sales, which they depend on for their income. Also, using emails for surveys wasn't practical because most cross-border traders did not have email addresses and did not have an office space to respond to them. Instead, the Accelerator Lab and volunteers switched to WhatsApp groups, discovering "the rate of response was faster than trying to put it on email where someone would have to try and go to an office."
This deep community engagement helped us to convene key stakeholders (cross-border trader associations, city council, customs authorities, immigration officials, and the Ministry of Health) to address the complex challenges facing women traders. The insights gathered continue to inform UNDP's work on the African Continental Free Trade Area, providing perspective on "barriers of entry for someone who is informal and a woman who's trying to trade across borders."
{% hint style="info" %}
**Key takeaways:**
* **Build trust first:** Invest time in understanding the local context, language, and culture before diving into problem-solving.
* **Partner with local intermediaries:** Work with community members who understand local language and culture to help facilitate trust and open dialogue
* **Observe and listen deeply:** Spend time in the community to understand everyday practices and experiences, while paying attention to both spoken and unspoken signals.
* **Respect time scarcity:** Recognize that time spent in workshops means lost income for vulnerable communities. Adapt engagement to minimize disruption and consider appropriate compensation for participation.
* **Use familiar channels**: Connect through communication platforms that are familiar and accessible to the community.
{% endhint %}
***
## Notes
1. This initiative was launched in 2021 through a collaboration between UNDP Accelerator Labs in both countries and the Cross Border Traders Associations operating in Livingstone (Zambia) and Victoria Falls Town (Zimbabwe). For more information, see Moses Zangar’s (2022) report. [↑](#endnote-ref-1)
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