History of the German-Zimbabwean Society (DSG e.V.)

The German-Zimbabwean Society (Deutsch-Simbabwische Gesellschaft e.V., DSG) was founded in 1984 at the suggestion of Dr. Richard Ellerkmann, the first ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Zimbabwe, which had become independent in 1980, and Dr. Ariston Maguranyanga Chambati, the first Zimbabwean ambassador to the Federal Republic.

At the founding, Dr. Ellerkmann pointed to the many ties between Zimbabwe and Germany. He recalled the geologist and Africa explorer Karl Mauch, who was the first to report on “Great Zimbabwe” in Germany. Many Catholic religious came to Zimbabwe before 1900 and founded mission stations with schools and clinics.

The first records of the significant San rock paintings in Zimbabwe were collected by the ethnologist Leo Frobenius.
During the National Socialist era, the colonial administration took in numerous Jews persecuted in Germany, most of whom settled in Bulawayo and Harare.

As a bilateral organisation, the DSG focused on promoting German relations with Zimbabwe in the fields of business, politics and culture.

In the early 1980s, Zimbabwe was considered a priority country of German development policy, and there were very close ties between the Federal Republic and Zimbabwe in development cooperation. To tackle the severe shortage of teachers, especially in rural Zimbabwe, up to 100 teachers came to the country every year and taught there for several years. A Goethe Centre was established in Harare to offer German language courses.

German industry showed great interest in Zimbabwe as a business partner, which was also reflected in the DSG’s membership. German companies exhibited at the large industrial trade fair in Bulawayo, and in Germany the DSG e.V. supported Zimbabwean companies in taking part in trade fairs and business forums.

German interest in Zimbabwe was also evident in the fact that members of the German Bundestag were members of the DSG. Rita Süssmuth, former President of the Bundestag, and Annemarie Renger, Vice-President of the Bundestag, served for a time as honorary presidents of the DSG.

Owing to political and economic changes in Zimbabwe, German interest, above all economic interest, cooled noticeably. This was reflected in companies leaving the DSG e.V. from the 1990s onwards.

In 1998, Dr. Reinhold Hemker (Member of the Bundestag 1994–2009) was asked to stand for President of the DSG e.V. His commitment changed the society’s activities. Contacts with many artists grew, and exhibitions, particularly of stone sculpture, were supported.

Since 1999, the DSG e.V. has been present every November at the “Bazaar Berlin” to give Zimbabwean artists a forum for their work. In cooperation with various German partner organisations, workshops with sculptors and painters have also been made possible.

The relationship with the “Zimbabwe Workcamps Association”, which has enabled many young Germans to take part in workcamps, developed into a reliable partnership. Support for selected project partners has also grown over the past ten years.

Almost every year, the DSG e.V. offers study tours to Zimbabwe. In 2023, Mangaliso Ndlovu, former Minister of Tourism, appointed Dr. Reinhold Hemker and his wife Kerstin as “Tourism Ambassadors”.

In November 2024, the DSG e.V. celebrated its 40th anniversary with many guests. And particularly pleasing: membership of the DSG e.V. has grown from around 40 members in 1990 to more than 140 today.