Who is Henrietta Rushwaya? Age, family, pictures, gold case, net worth
Henrietta Rushwaya is a controversial Zimbabwean politician, football administrator, and mining executive. She is the niece of Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa. In March 2023, Henrietta was linked to Southern Africa's Gold Mafia responsible for gold smuggling and money laundering between Zimbabwe and Dubai.
Source: UGC
Henrietta is not new to making scandalous tabloid headlines in Zimbabwe. In 2020, she was arrested while trying to smuggle gold out of Zimbabwe to Dubai. She has also been involved in several corruption and match-fixing allegations during her tenure as the CEO of the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA).
Henrietta Rushwaya's profile and bio summary
| Full name | Henrietta Rushwaya |
| Year of birth | 1968 |
| Age | 55 years old in 2023 |
| Place of birth | Masvingo, Zimbabwe |
| Current residence | Zimbabwe |
| Nationality | Zimbabwean |
| Gender | Female |
| Sexual orientation | Straight |
| Relatives | President Emmerson Mnangagwa (uncle),ZBC CEO Haliete Rushwaya (sister), Martin Rushwaya (cousin) |
| Alma mater | Morgenster Teachers College (Education) |
| Profession | Politician, football administrator, mining executive |
| Net worth | Approx. $5 million in 2023 |
Who is Henrietta Rushwaya?
Henrietta Rushwaya is a mining executive, football administrator, and politician from Zimbabwe. She studied education at Morgenster Teachers College in Masvingo. After graduation, she worked as a teacher for several years and later joined the Sports and Recreation Commission in Harare. In 2000, she received a scholarship to pursue sports management studies in Norway.
In 2004, she was in charge of fundraising for The Warriors national team and later worked with Vice President Joseph Msika as the sports director. She got another big win in March 2007 when she was appointed the CEO of the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA).
In 2008, she unsuccessfully tried to secure the ticket to represent Zanu PF in the Guthu South Parliamentary elections. Rushwaya lost her ZIFA CEO position in October 2016 after several match-fixing and corruption allegations made against her. She is currently the president of the Zimbabwe Miners Federation (ZMF).
Source: UGC
Henrietta Rushwaya's ZIFA scandals
In 2016, the ZIFA disciplinary tribunal revealed that Rushwaya had been fixing matches for over five years as the organization's CEO. She also planned to fix the 2017 Nations Cup qualifiers game between Zimbabwe and Swaziland. Henrietta said she had been talking with Asian match fixers since 2015 as part of her undercover operation. The game manipulation ring involved referees, journalists, and players.
In 2007 and 2008, she was charged with corruption and funds theft at ZIFA. In a separate incident in 2014, Rushwaya was arrested on allegations that she was planning to extort hundreds of thousands of dollars from Walter Magaya, the head and founder of Prophetic Healing Deliverance Ministries.
Henrietta Rushwaya's gold case
In August 2020, the mining executive was arrested at Robert Mugabe International Airport as she tried to smuggle about 6kg of gold worth $366,000 from Zimbabwe to Dubai. She was linked to an elite gold smuggling cartel consisting of Zimbabwe First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa and her son Collins Mnangagwa. The case was later withdrawn.
Source: UGC
Henrietta Rushwaya's latest news
In March 2023, Al Jazeera's Investigative Unit named Henrieta among the notorious Gold Mafia members responsible for smuggling gold and laundering billions of dollars between Zimbabwe and Dubai. Zimbabwe's senior diplomat Uebert Angel, also a preacher, and his deputy Rikki Doolan use their diplomatic ties to launder money into Zimbabwe. The smuggled cash is then used to buy the country's gold with the help of Henrietta, who was appointed president of the Zimbabwe Mining Federation.
Others involved in the smuggling business are Kenyan-born Kamlesh Pattni, Dubai-based Alistair Mathias and Ewan MacMillan, and Gold Leaf Tobacco co-owner Simon Rudland, who also has connections in South Africa. The Gold Mafia activities are supported by President Emmerson Mnangagwa's government through the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe.
Zimbabwe has a dollar shortage and cannot sell its gold following Western sanctions imposed during the late Robert Mugabe's reign. The country's currency is also weak due to prolonged hyperinflation. Through Gold Mafia activities in Southern Africa, Dubai, and the UK, criminals can clean billions of dollars of laundered money, while Zimbabwe can boost its dollar reserve with money disguised as revenue from legal gold trades.
Henrietta Rushwaya's age and family
The football administrator was born in 1968 in Masvingo, Zimbabwe, but her exact date of birth is yet to be published. She is 55 years old in 2023. Her sister is Heliete Rushwaya, the CEO of Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC). Henrietta is the niece of Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
Henrietta Rushwaya's husband
Source: UGC
It is unclear if she is married in 2023. In November 2015, Henrietta Rushwaya and Jah Prayzah were rumoured to be dating after a picture of them in a cosy position resurfaced online. They both denied being together. She previously dated footballer Banjani Mwaruwari and was rumoured to have had an affair with MDC politician Welshman Ncube in 2011.
Henrietta Rushwaya's biography reveals her deeply rooted political roots, which she uses to her advantage. Al Jazeera's Gold Mafia exposé has also left President Mnangagwa politically vulnerable.
READ ALSO: Who is the owner of Gold Leaf Tobacco Corporation, Simon Rudland?
Briefly.co.za published intriguing facts about Zimbabwean tycoon Simon Rudland. He is the co-owner of Gold Leaf Tobacco and established Pioneer Africa Corporation, a logistic company, alongside his brother Hamish Rudland.
Al Jazeera's Investigative Unit named Simon Rudland as one of the Gold Mafia members enabling gold smuggling and money laundering activities between Southern Africa and Dubai. He came out to refute the claims and threatened to sue the media company.
Source: Briefly News
