Participatory video with young women in Zimbabwe

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We’ve been making a participatory video, albeit remotely, with a group of girls and young women in Zimbabwe. It’s called Zvakwana, Zvakwana! (Shona for ‘Enough is enough!’). Again, it’s another project that has been delayed by lockdown after lockdown but it’s finally happened. The participants are taking part in research with the SAGE Programme, led by Plan International. SAGE (Supporting Adolescent Girls’ Education) is a UK-Aid-funded programme which offers alternative education and development opportunities for out-of-school girls in Zimbabwe.

The research is led by the Open University, with whom we’ve had a long relationship, and is following eleven girls over four years, exploring their perceptions about education and aspirations.

This film was made in collaboration with Catcher Media and will be available soon. The girls were supported to make a film that shares messages that they want to communicate to people who make decisions about education for girls like them. It was shot on tablets over three days in Zimbabwe in September 2021. Catcher Media provided remote training to the researchers and facilitators in the UK, Zimbabwe and South Africa and then further remote support to the group during the film-making workshops. We are currently editing the film together based on a script storyboard the group created.

“I think this is fantastic! I think it really showcases the girls’ contributions so well. Thank you!” – Dr. Alison Buckler, Senior Research Fellow, The Open University UK.


With the remote training, we developed new ways of working with Zoom as a participatory tool. We used 4 cameras simultaneously in order to provide virtual face-to-face support, software demos and film-making guidance. Definitely something we’d like to do more.

“The film gets more and more beautiful by the day! I am confident the girls will love it.” – Faith Mkwananzi, Education Researcher, University of the Free State, South Africa.

See more participatory projects in Africa: Mozambique and Malawi. Also check out PV with Adults.