Zuma meets Mugabe today

The inaugural session of the Bi-National Commission between Zimbabwe and South Africa to be jointly chaired by President Mugabe and his South African counterpart Jacob Zuma, starts in Harare today with a meeting of senior officials focusing on a plethora of bilateral issues.

These include trade, investment, energy, tourism, water and health. Head of Zimbabwe's senior officials' delegation, who is also Foreign Affairs Minister Simbarashe Mumbengegwi, will host a reception for his South African guests after the meeting this evening.

According to a provisional programme from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on Wednesday there would be a ministerial session that would be followed by the official opening of the BNC on Thurs- day. Minister Mumbengegwi (Zimbabwe) and South Africa International Relations and Co-operation Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane are expected to sign agreed minutes of the meeting, agreements and Memorandum of Understanding after which a joint communiqué would be issued.

A Press conference is scheduled thereafter followed by a luncheon hosted by President Mugabe. President Zuma is leading a delegation of eight Cabinet ministers. The BNC is a successor to the Joint Commission for Cooperation signed between the two countries on March 2, 1995.