By Simbarashe Sithole in Harare
ZANU PF central committee member Dr Kudakwashe Tagwirei has pledged over three million dollars towards empowerment of party members in Harare province.
All the six zones in Harare will get 480 solar powered boreholes worth thousands of dollars, 95000 food hampers for all zones worth US$ 1.7 million, US$1.6 million direct empowerment to members of the party and several scholarships for students across the province.
In his address at the Zone 6 ZANU PF inter-district meeting, Harare Provincial Chairman Godwills Masimirembwa thanked newly minted central committee member Dr Tagwirei for coming up with initiatives that attract numbers at party meetings.
“We want to give our thanks to Central Committee member Cde Tagwirei for coming up with such initiatives. We used to have these meetings but with less numbers, Cde Tagwirei brought the aura to the province
Cde Tagwirei noted the achievements by President Emmerson Mnangagwa towards fostering development for the people as follows;
• Fastest-growing economy in the SADC region – IMF.
• Zimbabwe’s economy grew from US$17 billion to US$52.3 billion.
• The official contribution of the real estate sector to GDP is estimated at US$1.5 billion, approximately 2.8%. This figure reflects only the formal market.
• In reality, about US$10 billion of real estate economic activity is unrecorded and not reflected in GDP figures. The Government is actively working to include these figures.
• Our Debt-to-GDP ratio stands at 40%, well below the SADC regional average of 58.8% and the African average of 64.3%, and is viewed as a healthy and sustainable level.
• Government revenue increased from US$2.7 billion to US$8 billion.
• Foreign exchange reserves grew from zero to US$900 million.
• GDP per capita income increased from US$1,000 to US$3,300.
• Foreign currency receipts increased from US$2.9 billion to US$15 billion.
• Export receipts grew from US$1.65 billion to US$7.9 billion.
• In 2023, the Government established the Mutapa Investment Fund, our first Sovereign Wealth Fund with assets under management of US$16 billion.
• To enhance land tenure security and economic value, the Government has launched a title deed programme for both urban and agricultural land. This initiative enables urban homeowners and farmers to receive official title deeds for their land.
• Infrastructure Development:
▪ 70,000 km of roads rehabilitated
▪ 12 major dams have been either completed or are nearing completion.
▪ The new Zimbabwe Parliament building at Mount Hampden was finished.
▪ The Trabablas interchange has been completed and is now functional.
▪ Mabvuku interchange is under construction.
▪ Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport and Victoria Falls International Airport were upgraded and expanded.
▪ Beitbridge and Chirundu Border Posts were upgraded, and Forbes is next in line.
• Installed Hwange Units 7 and 8, totalling 600MW capacity.
• Agriculture and Food Security:
▪ In 2017, 85% of basic goods were imported; now, only 15% are.
▪ Self-sufficient in local milk supply and achieving self-sufficiency in soybeans by 2030.
▪ Wheat production surged from 94,000 MT to 600,000 MT.
▪ Milk production rose by 75 million litres to 130 million litres.
▪ Tobacco reached a record 355 million kg, worth US$1.17 billion.
▪ Blueberry production reached a record high of 8 million kilograms, a 351% increase from 2017.
• Mining:
▪ Gold production increased from 24 tons to 45 tons.
▪ Zimbabwe holds Africa’s largest lithium reserves and exported 586,197 tonnes of spodumene concentrate in H1 2025 alone.
• Tourism:
▪ Forbes’ Best Country to Visit for 2025.
▪ Bloomberg’s Top 24 Destinations.
• Sectoral Developments:
▪ Africa’s largest steel plant, located in Manhize, aims to reach 5 million tonnes at full capacity.
▪ 70 indigenous construction companies since 2017.
▪ 4 cement companies have been established since 2017.
▪ The largest steel wholesaler is a local company called Steelmate.
▪ Glytime Food, a local company, has become a major producer of cereals.
• Social Development
▪ Over 1.6 million e-passports have been issued.
▪ The Government has provided unprecedented drought relief to 7.1 million people for the first time without donor dependence.
▪ The country has successfully managed three major droughts since 2018.
▪ The Government has constructed 1,132 houses for cyclone victims.