Mining for Empowerment: Norton Disability Group Strikes Opportunity

NORTON – ln a significant step towards economic inclusion, people with disabilities in Norton received a mining claim on Saturday, the twenty-eighth of June—an initiative aimed at fostering financial independence through direct participation in the mining sector.

The mining title was formally handed over by the National Organisation for Development and Empowerment, a grassroots organisation focused on uplifting marginalised communities.

For the Norton disability community, the development represents more than access to land—it marks the beginning of a long-awaited journey towards self-sufficiency.

“We have always had the willingness to work. But without access to tools, capital, or opportunities, it is like trying to build a house with your bare hands.

“This claim gives us the foundation we have been missing—a real chance to build something for ourselves,” said Miss Sharai Makota, Coordinator of the Norton Support Group for the Disabled.

She added that the group’s plans to construct a disability resource centre have long been hindered by lack of funding.

“We want a centre that does not just accommodate us, but understands us. One that offers education, skills training, and emotional support—all within a space built for our needs”.

Albinism rights advocate Mister Marston Kanhimbe echoed the sentiment, saying the community was tired of charity that came without sustainable change.

“We are not asking to be helped forever.
We just need the means to help ourselves. Being handed a mine is not about gold—it is about dignity, about showing that we matter, and that we have something to contribute,” he said.

According to ZBC , the President of the National Organisation for Development and Empowerment, Comrade Office Blant, said the donation ties directly into the Second Republic’s national agenda of inclusive development.

“We are responding to the President’s call to action—to make sure that no one and no place is left behind.

“And while this mining claim is key, we also came with warm clothing because empowerment must meet people where they are—in their homes, in their realities,” he said.

The handover has been welcomed as a tangible example of inclusive economic reform transforming people with disabilities from beneficiaries into architects of development within their own communities.