IF you have ever driven through Katete and found yourself greeted at your window by the aroma of smoked mbeba, chances are you have met Moses Banda and his band of mbeba missionaries.
The teenage boys are on a sacred mission to feed visitors craving for Eastern Province’s most beloved delicacy.
Many motorists who pass through Katete are often caught by surprise when approached by the boys with their smoked rodents.
However, for locals and frequent visitors, buying mbeba has become part of the experience of being in Eastern Province.
At just 19 years old, Moses Banda and his group of enterprising friends have turned the road side into their business turf, walking from car to car with his friends, each holding smoked mice trapped between two small sticks.
Banda, a pupil at one of the schools in Katete, told #Kalemba that the mbeba business is his side hustle as he is still a school-going pupil.
But in the after class, he trades his books for bushcraft, heading into the thickets around Katete to burrow and trap mbeba.
The mbeba gang shared that they utilise torchlight in the darkest of nights to hunt for mice and on a good day could capture up to 200.
When asked if their hunting can send the rodents into extinctions like dinosaurs, they replied “Zimagonela!” Meaning they procreate at a fast pace.
Once they get their delicacy, Banda takes time to properly smoke the mice using traditional methods, ensuring the flavour is just right.
Banda further revealed that on a typical day, Moses walks home with nothing less than K200, all from roasted rodents.
By George Musonda
Kalemba July 27, 2025
