ZTA defers Carnival 2018 edition

The much-anticipated Harare International Carnival that is run by the  Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) has once again been deferred. “The Zimbabwe Tourism Authority would like to advise all partners, stakeholders, the media and the general populace that after wide consultations it has been decided to defer the hosting of the Harare International Carnival. “The much…

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Communication and advocacy, data and information management critical for RVAA success

By Byron Mutingwende   The success of the Vulnerability Assessment and Analysis (VAA) efforts in the SADC region depends on strengthening communication and advocacy and data and information management systems.   This emerged at the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Regional Vulnerability Assessment and Analysis (RVAA) workshop in Johannesburg from 19 to 21 November 2018….

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Zimnat marathon raises $7 000 for Cebisani Ndlovu’s surgery

Zimnat’s first charity marathon, which was held at Barclays Sports Club in Harare on November 10, managed to raise almost the whole amount originally quoted for 30-year-old Bulawayo resident Cebisani Ndlovu’s spinal cord surgery. When Mr Ndlovu approached Zimnat for assistance, the amount needed at that time for the surgery at Mater Dei Hospital in…

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Kwese

Kwese iFlix named Best Innovation in Digital Entertainment at Africacom

Kwesé iflix, Africa’s game-changing digital entertainment platform, took centre stage at AfricaCom – the largest telecoms, media, and technology event in Africa – this year winning Best Innovation in Digital Entertainment. The award was presented by Balancing Act CEO Russell Southward. The awards honoured pioneering service providers and operators who are leading digital inclusion, connectivity…

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“Building a new Zimbabwe”, AfDB report to spark the country’s economic development

The African Development Bank (AfDB) (www.AfDB.org) has launched a flagship economic report on Zimbabwe, titled: “Building a new Zimbabwe: Targeted policies for growth and job creation” which aims to support renewal and transformation of the country. Prepared by the Bank Group’s Economic Governance and Knowledge Management Vice-Presidency, the report was presented in a plenary meeting…

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SUNRAP provides credible evidence on tackling nutrition challenges

By Byron Mutingwende   The Scaling Up Nutrition Research and Academic Platform (SUNRAP) seeks to provide credible evidence by undertaking quality research, and strengthen the technical capacity of stakeholders (through appropriate training), to deliver a cohesive multi-sectoral action that improves food and nutrition security outcomes.   This emerged at the combined Scaling Up Nutrition networks…

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The Japanese Market Responds Positively To Destination Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe’s continued reengagement efforts with the international community have seen some positive waves within the tourism business circles. Japan’s top travel agents have responded positively to the call made by the of Environment, Tourism & Hospitality Industry Minister, Hon Prisca Mupfumira to visit Zimbabwe. The visit is a follow up to Zimbabwe’s participation at the…

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ILO-led Zimbabwe Working Initiative promotes social dialogue for economic development

By Byron Mutingwende   The multi-stakeholder social dialogue underpinning the Zimbabwe Report on the Enabling Environment for Sustainable Enterprises (EESE) that is being spearheaded by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) is set to stimulate economic growth.   In his remarks at the launch of the Zimbabwe Report on EESE, Senator Lovemore Matuke, the Deputy Minister…

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Embracing ICTs critical for economic development

By Michael Mashiri Information Communication Technology (ICT) plays a crucial role in all sectors of the economy and helps in the accomplishment of the three pillars of sustainable development goals, the Representative for Southern Africa, International Telecommunications Union (ITU) has said. Speaking at the United Nations Information Centre (UNIC) yesterday at a programme with the…

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Climate change not a limiting factor: ZPHCA Grassroots Women

By Byron Mutingwende   Grassroots Women under the auspices of the Zimbabwe Parents of Handicapped Children Association (ZPHCA) have vowed to ensure food security beyond the adverse effects of climate change.   “Grassroots Women from Harare and Mashonaland East Provinces are implementing strategies to ensure food security and nutrition in spite of the adverse effects…

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Community Involvement Needed in Cultural Tourism’s Digital Transformation, says UNWTO Seminar

The World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO)’s International Seminar on Harnessing Cultural Tourism through Innovation and Technology and 40th Affiliate Members Plenary Session concluded with a renewed call for community participation in development of cultural tourism using cutting-edge technologies (12-14 November 2018, Hamedan, Islamic Republic of Iran). Cultural and heritage attractions are key to tourism development in…

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Decent Jobs for Youth on youth entrepreneurship in Africa

With youth unemployment in sub-Saharan Africa reaching over 11 million and a further 69% of young people identifying as the ‘working poor’, key public and private sector stakeholders have outlined a plan to tackle the challenges faced by youth in the region through fostering pro-employment growth. The proposal to be discussed at the Forum taking…

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Stabilise prices as a matter of urgency: TBCZ urges government

BY Miriam Zvomuya The Tourism Business Council of Zimbabwe (TBCZ) has urged the government to stabilise prices so that business in travel and tourism remain functional. This emerged at a media briefing in Harare. Tich Hwingiwiri, thePresident of TBCZ described the past two months as a turbulent time for the economy. ”We have been affected…

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Econet’s Vaya vs Taxi, Vaya Wins!!!

By Tapiwa Matthew Mutisi Those of you’ve who’ve never used Vaya might be wondering why I am reviewing a taxi service on this website. But once you try Vaya, you’ll understand. Cassava On Demand Services, a division of Cassava Smartech Zimbabwe – shortly to be listed on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE) following its unbundling from Econet Wireless…

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Ecobank, IFRC partnership to strengthen local communities in Africa

Ecobank (www.Ecobank.com) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) (www.IFRC.org) have signed an agreement to work closely together to empower local communities to cope with disasters more efficiently. “Many innocent lives continue to be lost in Africa simply as a result of insufficient investment in disaster preparedness. Many of the…

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Zimbabwe intensifying its brand marketing in various source markets

Zimbabwe is seriously looking at intensifying its brand marketing in various source markets in line with its marketing strategy coined “Vision 2025 National Tourism Recovery and Growth Strategy.”   This was said by Priscah Mupfumira, the Minister of Environment, Tourism and Hospitality Industry at the reception for stakeholders at the World Travel Market held in…

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Reducing the gap between formal and informal economies

By Charles Dhewa   Narrowing the gap between formal and informal economies remains a big challenge for many African countries. Instead of increasing interdependence between the two economies, in countries like Zimbabwe, the gap between the two economies seems to be widening.   As if that is not enough, academia, politics and financial institutions remain…

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Let’s embrace technology to combat climate change: Econet

By Byron Mutingwende Ms. Caroline Mozhendi, the Econet Head of Agribusiness has encouraged the use of technology to combat the effects of climate change by farmers in Zimbabwe.   Ms. Mozhendi made the remarks during an event whereby Ecofarmer joined the Shamva Agricultural College in celebrating 34 students who graduated at the institution on Friday…

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Afreximbank, CDC Group Sign $100 Million Master Risk Participation

The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) and CDC Group Plc. yesterday in Casablanca, Morocco, signed a $100-million master risk participation agreement to support Afreximbank’s Trade Facilitation Programme. Under the terms of the risk participation arrangement, CDC will provide unfunded risk participation to Afreximbank as the Bank provides trade finance products that include trade confirmation services; trade…

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Africa Investment Forum 2018: Unveiling the boardroom deals, key highlights

The first of its kind transaction-based investment Forum in Africa, on Friday unveiled the conclusions of the boardroom sessions at the heart of the Forum, which brought together over 1,000 participants from government, the private sector, development finance institutions, commercial banks, and institutional investors such as sovereign wealth funds and pension funds. The Forum focused…

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UNWTO/ETC Report: Outbound Tourism Spending from the Gulf is Six Times the Global Average

A new report from the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) and the European Travel Commission (ETC) shows that outbound tourism from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) – comprising six countries of the Arabian peninsula – has grown strongly in recent years, with international tourism expenditure surpassing USD 60 billion in 2017. ‘The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)…

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Tiens Group seeks to increase investment in Zimbabwe

By Byron Mutingwende   Chinese healthcare giant, Tiens Group, seeks to invest more in Zimbabwe following President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s call for opening up the country to the international community, the company’s chairman, Li Jinyuan has said. “I met President Mnangagwa and he revealed to me that he wants to open Zimbabwe for both local and…

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Contract farming improves family farmers’ access to markets, boosts incomes

By Byron Mutingwende and Miriam Zvomuya Contract farming has the potential to improve family farmers’ access to markets and boost their incomes while ensuring that agribusinesses have a stable supply of produce that meets their quality standards.  This emerged at the International Symposium on Contract Farming and other inclusive business models organised by the Food…

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Econet announces stellar half-year results buoyed by impressive SmarTech performance

Econet Wireless Zimbabwe Limited (EWZL) has announced $600 million dollars in half-year revenue to 31 August 2018, up from $ 353 million in the same period last year, on the back of a strong performance by its ’SmarTech’ business unit. The conglomerate, which is well on its way to becoming the country’s first listed billion-dollar…

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Doors to invest in tourism open for all: Mupfumira

Zimbabwe is open for business – this was the strong message heard at the Invest Zimbabwe Forum held in London on Thursday. In her opening address, Hon. Priscah Mupfumira, Minister of Environment, Tourism and Hospitality Industry reminded investors that Zimbabwe is now open for business, and highlighted that the country has been rated a top…

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African Development Bank, Africa50 in Landmark Bridge Project Linking Kinshasa and Brazzaville

On the sidelines of the Africa Investment Forum, the African Development Bank and Africa50 have signed yesterday an agreement with the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of Congo to develop and finance the first road-rail bridge project linking their capitals – Kinshasa and Brazzaville. Under the terms of the framework agreement, the two…

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Knowledge on Tourism Technology Shared at UNWTO/WTM Ministers’ Summit

The UNWTO/WTM Ministers’ Summit, held on Tuesday by World Travel Market and the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), was well received by participants from government and the private sector for its more dynamic new format leading to more concrete takeaways around this year’s theme: Investment in Tourism Technology. This year, the UNWTO/WTM Ministers’ Summit held at…

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Mayors selected in accordance to party procedures and processes: MDC

By Jacob Mafume (MDC National Spokesperson) The MDC takes this opportunity to put on record the process which the MDC followed in electing mayors in various municipalities across the country. 1. The party called for expression of interest from elected councillors in all the cities and towns. 2. Interested candidates submitted their profiles and CVs….

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Econet in smart partnership with City of Harare to spruce up First Street

By Byron Mutingwende   In pursuit of coming up with a metropolitan that competes with world capitals in terms of infrastructure, architecture, service delivery and facilities, Econet Wireless Zimbabwe is partnering the City of Harare in a project to spruce up First Street.   In his speech during the launch of the project, Lovemore Nyatsine,…

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We have not lost case against BAZ: Econet Media

Econet Media sets the record straight Kwesé parent company Econet Media (Mauritius) says reports that it has lost a court case against the Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe (BAZ) are malicious, misinformed and misplaced.   Responding to reports in the Herald newspaper that the Supreme Court had ruled that “Econet Media (Mauritius) cannot distribute Kwese TV…

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Kwese iflix leads digital entertainment revolution in Africa

Following Kwesé’s announcement of its move towards digital services, the broadcaster has said it will grant loyal Kwesé TV subscribers complimentary access to Kwesé iflix for 12 months. This means Kwesé TV subscribers with an active subscription as at October 31, 2018, can indulge in one year’s worth of uninterrupted access to a vast library…

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UNWTO Calls for Tech and Investment in Tourism at World Travel Market 2018

The 2018 edition of World Travel Market (WTM) will see the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) continue its operational focus on investing in innovation and digital advances for a tourism sector that can deliver opportunities for all. UNWTO will co-host a Ministerial Summit and launch a white paper on the relationship between music and tourism at…

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Ecofarmer seeks to modernise agriculture

By Byron Mutingwende   Ecofarmer is working towards modernising agriculture by embracing technologies in order to improve production efficiency, achieve food security and profitability for farmers.   In a speech read on his behalf by Mr. Leonard Munamati – the Provincial Crop and Livestock Production Officer for Mashonaland East Province at the Ecofarmer Agri-tech expo…

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Giving scientific knowledge an indigenous face in developing countries

By Charles Dhewa The intersection between health and nutrition continues to be a grey area for ordinary people in many developing countries. There have not been serious efforts to develop appropriate ways of sharing nutrition knowledge with the majority. For instance, formal education systems have not done enough to move health and nutrition from being…

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Africa Internship Academy grooming continent’s next generational change agents

The organisation has contributed immensely towards reducing the rate of unemployment on the African continent Africa holds a very high rate of youth unemployment. In Ghana for instance, about 120,000 young people graduate from various institutions with about 10% getting employed after the first year of completion. Over 16% will never work in their lifetime,…

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UNWTO Agenda Receives Strong Support at Executive Council and Introduces Technology Forum

The World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) concluded its 109th Executive Council session in Manama, Bahrain yesterday, with Members showing appreciation both for progress made under the 2018 institutional priorities and for the Organisation’s financial stability and restructuring process. Today, UNWTO will also introduce a forum named ‘Tourism Tech Adventure: Big Data Solutions, bringing together the ‘ecosystem’ of…

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