Eleven Vhavenḓa communities who have been working together for three years to record their history, heritage, cultural and customary practices, are set to launch the Miṱodzi ya Zwifho zwa Vhongwaniwapo: Vhavenḓa Biocultural Community Protocol (BCP)inLimpopo Province this weekend. The launch isa milestone achievement as the Biocultural Community Protocol outline’s the communities’ collective rights and responsibilities under customary, national and international law and reaffirms their formal guidelines for granting access and permission to their Zwifho.
A BCP is a community-defined framework that articulate values, procedures and priorities of the community and has been created to provide a roadmap for understanding the history, the traditional protocols and cultural practices that have guided the sustainable use of natural resources and the Indigenous knowledge systems of Vhavenda communities.
The Miṱodzi ya Zwifho zwa Vhongwaniwapo: Vhavenḓa BCP represents the shared voices of the following Vhavenḓa communities: Luvhola, Mbwenda (Hamagoro), Mulambwane, Phiphiḓi (Haramunangi), Songozwi ḽa Vhadzanani, Tshidzivhe (Thathe), Tshiluvhi, Tshiṱungulu, Tshivhazwaulu, Vhuṱanḓa and Vuu ḽa Vho Tshitavhe, located in the region and is centred around the safeguarding and protection of their Zwifho.
Zwifho are sacred natural sites found within Indigenous forests, lakes, ponds, waterfalls and caves. They form the spiritual and cultural heartbeat of each community, binding our ancestors, royal families, and communities to the land with an umbilical cord.
This BCP process has been endorsed by the 11 royal families and their communities who have granted permission to record their culture, traditions, customs, natural resources and ways of life of their Zwifho that are at the heart of this protocol.
The BCP was launched on 6 December 2025.
