By Farai Mutsaka October 19, 2025 — 9.30am
Shamva: Inside a white tent with a wooden fireplace in the middle, about two dozen African girls slip off their shoes, sit on mattresses and prepare to pour their hearts out.
They hold hands and their chants of “it’s so nice to be here” echo through the tent before they set about discussing sexuality, child marriage, teen pregnancy, gender bias, education, economic empowerment and the law. Nothing is off limits.
“This is a safe space, every girl feels free,” said 18-year-old Anita Razo. Credit: AP
The girls’ hangout in rural north-eastern Zimbabwe is a revival of Nhanga, the local term for “girls’ bedroom”, an ancient traditional space once used to prepare adolescent girls for marriage.
Across rural Zimbabwe, girls are now reinventing the centuries-old practice as a peer-led movement to resist child marriage, which is rife in the southern African nation.
“This is a safe space, every girl feels free,” said 18-year-old Anita Razo, who joined at 14 and now mentors younger girls.
Ancient tradition, new purpose In traditional homesteads, a round thatched hut served as Nhanga, a female-only room where girls were taught obedience, how to please husbands and moral education. It reinforced patriarchal expectations.
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