Macheke is a small

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

an town located in

Murewa Murewa (also spelled Mrewa or Muhrewa) is a township (and district) in Zimbabwe, 75 kilometers northeast from the capital of Harare, at the road to Tete (Mozambique). It is situated almost 1400 m above sea level. In 2002, the number of inhabitant ...

District A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

, province of

Mashonaland East Mashonaland East, informally Mash East, is a province of Zimbabwe. It has an area of 32,230 km2 and a population of approximately 1.35 million (2012). Marondera is the capital of the province. Geography Districts Mashonaland East i ...

, located about 105 km south-east of

Harare Harare (; formerly Salisbury ) is the capital and most populous city of Zimbabwe. The city proper has an area of 940 km2 (371 mi2) and a population of 2.12 million in the 2012 census and an estimated 3.12 million in its metropolitan ...

on the main A3

Mutare Mutare (formerly Umtali) is the most populous city in the province of Manicaland, and the third most populous city in Zimbabwe, having surpassed Gweru in the 2012 census, with an urban area, urban population of 224,802 and approximately 260,567 ...

highway road. According to the 1982 population census, the town had a population of 1,888. It was named after the Macheke River and means "''you have divided''". Macheke is the hometown of

Vernon Chidongo Vernon may refer to: Places Australia *Vernon County, New South Wales Canada *Vernon, British Columbia, a city *Vernon, Ontario France * Vernon, Ardèche *Vernon, Eure United States * Vernon, Alabama * Vernon, Arizona * Vernon, California * ...

a politician who played a pivotal role in the Lacoste succession. Chidongo was nearly appointed as the deputy minister of foreign affairs for Zimbabwe at the age of 22, but

Emmerson Mnangagwa Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa (, American English, US: (); born 15 September 1942) is a Zimbabwean politician who has served as President of Zimbabwe since 24 November 2017. A member of ZANU–PF and a longtime ally of former President Robert Muga ...

decided against it after strong opposition from certain members of the Zimbabwe government. Macheke is also the hometown of

Wicknell Chivayo Wicknell Chivayo Is a Zimbabwean businessman who rose to prominence after winning large Zimbabwean government contracts. It was reported that the then Energy and Power Development Minister of Zimbabwe Samuel Undenge pressured the Zimbabwe Power C ...

, a well known and controversial Zimbabwean businessman accused of government contract abuse during the rule of

Robert Mugabe Robert Gabriel Mugabe (; ; 21 February 1924 – 6 September 2019) was a Zimbabwean revolutionary and politician who served as Prime Minister of Zimbabwe from 1980 to 1987 and then as President from 1987 to 2017. He served as Leader of the ...

Geography

The city has old locations called Nyazema (high density suburbs), which were the first locations to be settled by the Macheke Founders. Now the town has grown into Springfield and Damview (low density suburbs), and Mutamba phase 1 & phase 2 (high density suburbs).

Demographics

Macheke residents are mostly from

Malawi Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast ...

and other parts of Zimbabwe. The town founders are from Malawi and neighboring areas. English, Chishona, and Chichewa are the major languages spoken in Macheke.

Economy

Tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

and mixed crops are farmed in the surrounding lands. There are a number of large scale tobacco and horticultural farmers in the area so Macheke serves as the main business centre providing goods and services for the farming community. Regarding business expansion, Macheke has burgeoned. Vending along the highway is one of the major economic activities done in this area. Hawkers mainly sell fresh farm produce that is sourced and procured from the surrounding farms. Main products sold include Tomatoes, potatoes and numerous other vegetables. There are also a handful of horticultural exporters in the area. Crops grown for export mainly include soft fruit, mange tout peas and fine beans.

Personalities

Macheke is also the hometown of

, a prominent Zim-Hip Hop Artist and publicly proclaimed ally of the Zanu PF lacoste faction.

References

http://www.machekeproject.org/ Populated places in Mashonaland East Province {{Zimbabwe-geo-stub