By Byron Mutingwende ActionAid Zimbabwe has said it is of paramount importance to capacitate journalists and other key stakeholders on the African Governance Architecture (AGA) and the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance (ACDEG). For that reason, ActionAid Zimbabwe (AAZ) is implementing a 3-year project on African Governance Architecture (AGA) focusing on…
Monday the 26th of March 2018 was the official opening of the inaugural Harare Indaba held at the Johannesburg Country Club in Auckland Park, Johannesburg under the banner “Zimbabwe is Open for Mining”meant to showcase the country’s vast mineral wealth. The initial event was staged in Johannesburg to compliment the already scheduled Cross-Border Services Indaba…
The Zimbabwe Parents of Handicapped Children Association (ZPHCA) together with other organisations presented their queries to the Government during the belated celebrations of the International Day for Persons with Disabilities. As the promulgation of the Disabled Persons Act (Chapter 17; 01) of 1992 attests to Government’s commitment to promote the capabilities and advance the capacities…
By Farai Chirimumimba I am trying to find the politest word to describe the alleged externalisation of US$ 112,817 by National Blood Service of Zimbabwe (NBSZ) through payment of goods that may never have been delivered in Zimbabwe. Let us just say it is “distressing”. However, l understand that a cowardly NBSZ current debacle may…
By Byron Mutingwende Nakai Soko (not her real name) arrived home around seven o’clock in the evening. Upon opening the door, she realised that her father was reading a newspaper, relaxed on the couch in the living room. She knew trouble had started because the rule was that she was supposed to be at…
The Zimbabwe electricity Supply Authority (ZESA)’s anti-trade union crusade continues after they caused the arrest of the Secretary-General of the National Energy Workers’ Union (NEWUZ) for taking part in a collective job action. On 13 March 2018, the Secretary General of NEWUZ, Mr. Thomas Masvingwe, was asked to report to Harare Central Police Station Law…
By Byron Mutingwende It is often said mining companies do more harm to the communities they operate in than any good but this is not the case for Murowa Diamond which operates in Zvishavane in the Midlands Province. Located in the Mazvihwa area, some 70km from the mining town of Zvishavane, Murowa Diamond…
Imagine President Emmerson Mnangagwa squaring off with other presidential candidates such as MDC Alliance hopeful Advocate Nelson Chamisa, National People’s Party (NPP) Dr Joice Mujuru and Alliance for People’s Agenda (APA) candidate Dr Nkosana Moyo. Zimbabwe has never had a live presidential debate but that may change ahead of the ensuing harmonised elections in July/August….
The Governments of Zimbabwe and South Africa are committed to ensuring efficient service delivery for people with disabilities (PWDs). For this reason, the South African Deputy Minister for Social Development, Hendrietta Bogopane-Zulu visited the country to discuss with the minister of Labour and Social Welfare, Petronella Kagonye. The bilateral visit was to guarantee comprehensive expansion…
The Procurement Regulatory Authority Chairperson Vimbai Nyemba has said the awarding of the tender to Intratrek clearly shows the process was not done in a legal manner considering the time taken for the deal to be concluded. Nyemba made the remarks when the State Procurement Board appeared before the Mines and Energy Committee of Parliament…
By Byron Mutingwende Church leaders in Zimbabwe had a meeting with President Mnangagwa where they expressed their willingness to be represented in Parliament but there are mixed views concerning that request. Speaking at the church interface meeting with President Mnangagwa, Bishop Clement Chisango of the Ebenezer Holy Church who represented the Council of…
By Byron Mutingwende After revealing the systematic picking apart of Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) assets, which are held in trust by ZIFA(Pvt) Ltd, some of the Councillors who sat in the farcical Feb 17 AGM are aghast in shock. Yet, others are saying they didn’t know that such transactions were contained in the audited financial…
By Joyce Mukucha Signs of Hope Trust a Zimbabwe held a meeting with persons with disabilities to teach them on the importance of participating in the electoral processes. Speaking during the occasion to celebrate women with disabilities held on the 9th of March 2018 in Harare, Samantha Sibanda, the founder of Signs of Hope said…
By Byron Mutingwende Civil society organisations have voiced concern over government’s silence on the whereabouts of missing human rights activist and journalist Itai Dzamara and urged authorities to account for him. Amnesty International urged Zimbabwean authorities to honour the promise they made to investigate “all the leads to establish the whereabouts” of Dzamara, on Friday 9…
Chairperson of the PAP Committee on Trade, Customs and Immigration, Hon Dr. Tapiwa Mashakada says there is need for enhanced regional cooperation to tackle the issue of migration. An estimated 34 million people in Africa are migrants and Libya currently plays host to 621 706 of this figure. Of the 621 706 migrants in Libya, 575 569…
By Patricia Mashiri and Joyce Mukucha The Zimbabwe Women’s Parliamentary Caucus (ZWPC) has launched a 50/50 Advocacy Campaign and Manifesto which seeks to spell out their situation and build on the earlier progress made towards gender equality. The manifesto calls for recognition of women’s demands and government’s accountability in advancing gender equality in line with…
By Byron Mutingwende The Marange Development Trust has bemoaned the indiscriminate destruction of the environment by miners in the diamond area of Manicaland. “Before the discovery of diamond, families used to depend on crop cultivation, breeding goats, cattle and chickens, selling wild fruit, charcoal and gardening. However with mining, there is widespread water…
By GenderLinks While President Cyril Ramaphosa’s new cabinet has taken South Africa to within a whisper of gender parity at the executive level it has failed to inspire a new vision for gender equality, according to an analysis conducted by Gender Links. In his own changes that involved 30 ministers and six deputy ministers (see…
The Pan-African Parliament, in collaboration with the Parliamentary Forum on Small Arms and Light Weapons will host the regional seminar “Connecting the dots: Supporting 2030 Agenda, the Arms Trade Treaty and the United Nations Programme of Action on Small Arms implementation through increased parliamentary engagement and action in international processes” on March 2-3 2018 at the PAP Headquarters…
The March Sitting of the Permanent Committees of the Pan African Parliament (PAP) will take place in Midrand, from the 2nd to the 09th at the PAP precincts located at 19 Richards Drive, Gallagher Estate. At least 200 Legislators representing various African countries are expected to convene and work on this agenda under the theme “Winning the Fight…
By Byron Mutingwende Women and girls need free sanitary wear so as to improve their sexual reproductive and health rights (SRHR), Priscilla Misihairambwi-Mushonga, the Chairperson of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Women and Youths has said. Misihairambwi made the call during the #Happy Flow Campaign Zimbabwe that seeks to tackle seven points meant…
By Byron Mutingwende Stakeholders at a public hearing held by the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Transport and Infrastructure at the New Ambassador Hotel in Harare on 13 February 2018 said the Civil Aviation Bill needed amendments on many areas. In his contribution, Nkosilathi Sibanda, the Chairman of the Commercial and General Aviation Association…
By Joyce Mukucha In a way of empowering women and protecting their rights, the Women’s Coalition of Zimbabwe (WCoZ) is developing programmes aimed at ensuring that women who are subjected to persecution, torture and other forms of abuse receive rehabilitative treatment and support. As proposed in the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission Act (NPRC) that…
The Tribe of Influencers will honour the most popular bloggers in the country. Voting for the Zimbabwean Blog Awards commenced on the 1st of February 2018 and will close on the 21st of February. Voting is open to anyone and everyone, local and abroad. The public can vote as many times as they want and…
By Byron Mutingwende The Speaker of the National Assembly, Honourable Jacob Mudenda has made a passionate appeal to the African Union (AU) Ambassador to the United States of America to facilitate re-engagement between Harare and Washington. Mudenda registered the request during a courtesy call by members of the Pan African Parliament (PAP) at the…
By Farai Chirimumimba Members of the National Blood Service Zimbabwe (NBSZ) forced the adjournment of an Extra-Ordinary General Meeting (EGM) called for last Friday saying that they needed time to consult and come up with an informed decision after the board failed to provide answers to several questions raised from the floor. The agenda for…
By Byron Mutingwende The President of the Pan African Parliament (PAP), Honourable Roger Nkodo Dang has hailed Zimbabwe’s peaceful transition and described it as the first of its kind and most peaceful on the continent. Dang made the remarks at a briefing with the media at a local Hotel in Harare upon arrival…
The President of the Pan African Parliament (PAP) H.E. Roger Nkodo Dang, which is one of the 12 organs of the African Union, is visiting Zimbabwe to pay a courtesy call on Zimbabwe’s new President ED Mnangagwa. The Pan African Parliament was established by the 1991 Abuja Treaty but started business in 2004. The PAP…
By Patricia Mashiri The Zimbabwe Grain Marketing Board (GMB) is failing to deliver services to farmers throughout the country. This is evidenced by the late delivery of inputs from the Presidential Scheme that were supposed to have been delivered to the farmers countrywide. The inputs comprise of 10kg maize seed, 50kg Compound D fertilizer, 50…
By Byron Mutingwende The noble undertaking of working towards the vision of achieving universal access to sustainable energy in Zimbabwe is being impeded by a plethora of challenges that require urgent attention. This appeared at a meeting of the Portfolio Committee on Mines and Energy held in the Senate Chamber with the minister…
By Byron Mutingwende Winston Chitando, the technocrat that President Emmerson Mnangagwa appointed as minister of mines and mining development has laid out a revival plan for the sector. Chitando revealed that during the deliberations on oral evidence from his sector, boards and parastatatals on the ministry’s plans and programmes to address the urgent…
By Joyce Mukucha and Patricia Mashiri The government of Zimbabwe is working tirelessly to fix the economy of the country through a number of initiatives which were presented at the post budget seminar which took place on 08 January 2018 under the theme “New Economic Order.” The Post Budget Seminar brought to light the fact…
By Byron Mutingwende Honourable Betty Nhambu-Kaseke, the Member of the House of Assembly for Kuwadzana was catapulted into Parliament on a ruling party Zanu (PF) ticket in 2015 following by-elections in the constituency but has brought considerable development in the short space of time she has been in charge of the area. Spiked Online Media…
The Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) has condemned the recent press proclamation by the Government of Zimbabwe that placed the Civil Service Commission (CSC) under the Office of President and Cabinet (OPC). The teachers’ union said the move undermines principles of good public administration as set out in the constitution and added that…
By Byron Mutingwende Caregivers and members of the Zimbabwe Parents of Handicapped Children Association (ZPHCA) held a meeting to highlight challenges faced by persons with disabilities and proffer solutions that lead to sustainable and resilient solutions to this marginalised group. Speaking at a belated commemorative workshop to observe the International Day of Persons…
By Byron Mutingwende In pursuit of improving human rights through the participation of people with disabilities in social, economic and political spheres in Zimbabwe, youths with disabilities are monitoring the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities (UNCRPD). Elisa Ravengai, the National Coordinator of the Federation of…
By Byron Mutingwende The Sheriff of the High Court on Monday 16 October 2017 descended on the headquarters of cash rich National Social Security Authority (NSSA), attaching the giant pension fund’s assets in execution of a High Court order granted in favour of Chikuni Mutiswa. Using a High Court order for High Court…
By Byron Mutingwende The Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN) has said that the time to educate and sensitise citizens about the commencement of the mobile registration exercise is inadequate. “The Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN) notes an article published by the ZBC News on the mobile registration of Zimbabwean citizens by the Registrar General (RG)…
The Election Resource Centre (ERC) – an independent electoral management body, has welcomed progress made by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) towards enhancing transparency. In a statement, the ERC welcomed Statutory Instrument 85 (S.I. 85) of 2017 that was gazetted by ZEC on the 21st of July 2017 which outlines new voter registration regulations ahead…
By Nevson Mpofu The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, also known as UN Women, working together with the Women Coalition of Zimbabwe and Child Coalition have expressed concern over the increase in cases of child marriage and welcomed the new legislation to address the vice. Taking heed to India’s Founding Father,…
By Byron Mutingwende A renowned animal rights lawyer, Vimbai Chinoda has said the Judiciary and law students need to be educated about the value of animals and their contribution to society and the economy. The trivialisation of wildlife crime cases by the judiciary in the courts as highlighted by Minister Oppah Muchinguri is…
By Byron Mutingwende The Law Development Commission (LDC), with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Centre for Applied Legal Research has embarked on a project to promote an effective justice delivery system through use of legislation that introduces new forms of admissible evidence like the deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). “The…
By Byron Mutingwende Parliamentarians have been urged to lobby for governance solutions and legislation that advance sustainable wildlife management and conservation in line with the sustainable development goals (SDGs). This was said by Wonder Mashange, the Chairperson of the Zimbabwe Parliamentary Conservation Caucus at a wildlife governance workshop held at the Meikles Hotel…
By Byron Mutingwende The Southern African Political Economy Series Trust (Sapes) and Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition (CiZC) Conference on developing a dialogue for reform and reconstruction in Zimbabwe has pitted two major contending paradigms in a bid to resuscitate the economy. On one side, the Minister of Finance, Patrick Chinamasa and his government colleagues at…
By Byron Mutingwende Lizzy Kanyimo (eight months pregnant) arrives at the local clinic, her stomach bulging. In the left hand she is holding a stick that helps her to get balance. Her left leg is shorter than the right one. “So these cripples loves sex as well! These men are cruel. How can…
