Zimbabwe gears up for Sadc summit

THE country is geared up for the Sadc summit for Heads of State and Government set for August with several massive construction works ongoing, while a Sadc interministerial team is in Harare to finalise logistics.

Deputy Chief Secretary for Finance, Administration and Human Resources in the Office of the President and Cabinet, Mr Zvinechimwe Churu, yesterday led a delegation of 13 Permanent Secretaries on a tour of the Liberation City, housing the Museum of African Liberation, one of the venues for the Sadc summit.

Several developments are ongoing with a mall being constructed by the National Social Security Authority  almost complete, while a service station and a heritage village are already operational.

Construction of the Museum of African Liberation is being fast-tracked.

Mr Churu said all was in place for the Sadc summit.

"I think it is there for all of us to see. The road construction is going on while construction of buildings and the works being done in the water, sanitation and hygiene area are all work in progress.

"We are geared for Sadc. I can assure you it will be a success," he said.

Mr Churu said the success of the Museum of African Liberation requires the collaboration of the business sector.

"What is key is that among us as a Government, for us to expedite the construction of this project and to make it a success, we must be able to work together.

"To work together in mobilising resources, mobilising the relevant artefacts and doing the necessary designs, of course key in that regard is also the construction," he said.

"We would like to ensure that the Museum is completed as soon as possible so that people enjoy the services and the products that will come out of it."

The Permanent Secretary for Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, Mr Nick Mangwana, said the purpose of the visit was to check on progress at one of the venues for the August summit.

"This is going to be one of the hosting places for the summit itself. The Sadc region was liberated through mostly the liberation struggles of Mozambique, Angola, Zimbabwe, and Namibia, among others.

"This is a site of history of African liberation, therefore it is fitting that part of the summit will be held here.

"There will be a groundbreaking ceremony that will happen here as well by the incoming Sadc chair, who is our President His Excellency Dr Emmerson Mnangagwa as well as the outgoing Sadc chair, the Angolan President and the Sadc secretary general," he said.

Mr Mangwana said there is so much untapped wisdom and knowledge that is out there which should be taken advantage of to make sure that the untold Zimbabwean story is told and the untold story of African liberation is told.

"This is an African story of how we came to be. We have different facets of this liberation city. We have got so many different facets where every African liberation story is going to be told.

"We visited a studio where anyone with a story to tell about their experience during the liberation struggle came and shared their experiences," he said.

Institute of African Knowledge chief executive Ambassador Kwame Muzawazi thanked the Office of the President and Cabinet for co-ordinating the ministries of Government on a whole-of-government approach.

"The Liberation City is everyone's place, all of us must make sure that it is ready. We are full throttle and will be hosting some activities during the Sadc summit and it's imperative that we be ready with infrastructure so that we can deliver a product that is to international standards," he said.

Ambassador Muzawazi said President Mnangagwa appointed a special envoy, Ambassador Simbarashe Mumbengegwi, and tasked him to go to 21 countries in Africa and mobilise support for the building of the Museum of African Liberation and the response has been positive.