By 
By Ross Moyo
When NetOne says “NetOne in the community,” it is no longer talking about signal bars. At 30, Zimbabwe’s first mobile network is betting its legacy on a different kind of connectivity — connecting a mother in Mt Darwin to a doctor in Harare without a bus fare.
The Presidential commendation at Chinhoyi puts state weight behind a model NetOne has been quietly piloting for two years under OneHealth.
FROM VIRTUAL HOSPITAL TO HEALTH ON WHEELS
In October 2024, NetOne unveiled the OneHealth Telemedicine Virtual Hospital in Mhangura, officially opened by Group CEO Eng. Raphael Mushanawani to foster inclusive, technology-enabled healthcare delivery. Mushanawani’s message then: “Geography must no longer be a barrier to quality healthcare.”
The model scaled. In October 2025, a Virtual Telemedicine Hospital in Ntunungwe, Matabeleland South — one of Zimbabwe’s first fully digital rural healthcare hubs — was launched. “This Virtual Telemedicine Hospital is not just a booth — it is a hospital without walls; a medical bridge between Ntunungwe and the rest of Zimbabwe,” Mushanawani said.
As of July 2025, more than 20 telehealth sites are operational nationwide, three of them in Matabeleland, with more planned for Beitbridge and Gwanda. Each booth carries smart health kits, secure video conferencing, cameras for visual diagnosis, multilingual interfaces and on-site support from trained nurses.
NetOne now accounts for 46.14% of Zimbabwe’s rural base stations, making it one of the largest contributors to rural network infrastructure and a bridge across the digital divide.
WHY 100 KIOSKS MATTER
Zimbabwe has just 1.7 doctors per 100,000 people – less than the African mean of 2.6, and way under WHO’s recommendation of 1 doctor per 1000 people. The country has a shortfall of 64,000 health care workers and needs to double the workforce by 2028.
ZimSmart Villages, led by Dr Admore Jokwiro — winner of the 2025 Virtual Care Leadership Excellence Award by MENA Telehealth Organisation — has filled part of that gap with 17 post office telehealth kiosks and BatsiHealth platform. In the first half of 2025 alone, ZimSmart doubled consultations to 4,000 and screened at least 50,000 clients.
The new Health on Wheels kiosks are designed to bridge critical gaps by combining mobile access, static telehealth, AI-supported services, and last-mile delivery. Planned services include pregnancy monitoring, malaria screening, blood pressure and glucose checks, maternal and child health navigation, HIV and TB support, health education, point-of-care diagnostics, early identification of cancer and substance abuse, and facility-authorised chronic medicines and ARV distribution subject to protocols.
Crucially, where district-approved safety protocols exist, the model will also support last-mile evacuation from rural homesteads to clinics for maternal emergencies, snakebite victims and other acute cases.
THE PARTNERSHIP MATH
This is not a CSR photo-op. It is a convergence:
NetOne: Funding and support — financing initial deployment of 10 kiosks, part of 100.
ZimSmart Villages: Driving technical and operational model, drawing on experience in digital health, telehealth, community outreach.
ZANU PF Department of Health: Ward-based mobilization and leadership, giving practical expression to “Nyika inovakwa nevene vayo” and “leaving no one and no place behind”.
It complements the healthcare vision championed by First Lady Dr Amai Auxillia Mnangagwa, whose advocacy has helped place technology-enabled healthcare higher on the national agenda.
NetOne spokesperson Ernest Magadzire said: “We are encouraged by His Excellency’s commendation. His visionary leadership provides a clear direction towards Vision 2030, and our responsibility is to translate that ambition into practical contributions that benefit communities.”
Dr Jokwiro stated: “ZimSmart Villages is bringing together digital health, mobile outreach and community-based healthcare to create a connected pathway from screening to clinical consultation, referral and follow-up.”
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