Online Reporter
Mukudzei Chingwere
Herald Reporter
PRESIDENT Mnangagwa has expressed sorrow following the death of Zesa Holdings executive chairman, Dr Sydney Gata, who passed away in Harare on Thursday after a short illness.
Dr Gata was also the husband of Primary and Secondary Education Deputy Minister, Angeline Gata.
In his condolence message yesterday, President Mnangagwa lauded Dr Gata’s life-long dedication to energy solutions and infrastructure development, highlighting his contributions to academia and public service.
Among his notable accomplishments were pivotal projects such as the Hwange Power Station Phases 1 and 2, the Main Transmission System, and the Urban and Rural Electrification Master Plan, which significantly advanced Zimbabwe’s energy infrastructure.
“I am deeply saddened to hear about the loss of Dr Sydney Zikuzo Gata, the executive chairman of ZESA Holdings and husband to our Deputy Minister of Primary and Secondary Education, Hon Angeline Gata, who passed on at a local hospital yesterday (Thursday) after a short illness,” said President Mnangagwa. “Dr Gata was a very committed figure who dedicated his life to providing energy solutions and infrastructure development for the nation.
“He was a devoted and eminent cutting-edge engineer and educationist who made his mark both in theory and practice in Zimbabwe and beyond, in a career that spanned decades in academia, engineering and public service.”
Dr Gata started his career as a lecturer at the Chelsea College of Aeronautical Engineering in London, the United Kingdom, where he made a huge impact in the fields of Mechanical and Aeronautical engineering.
He also lectured at the City University Department of Mechanical Engineering and Aeronautics in London before coming back home to lecture at the University of Zimbabwe’s Faculty of Engineering.
President Mnangagwa said Dr Gata was appointed the first black general manager of the Electricity Supply Company and at the end of his five-year term, he was elevated to the post of chief executive officer and board member of the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority.
During this period, Dr Gata also sat on the board of the Central Africa Power Corporation (CAPCO).
The President said Dr Gata’s high profile saw him appointed to several important international energy organisations, including the World Energy Council (WEC), where he became a regional coordinator of the WEC Sub Saharan African region.
Eventually, he became deputy chairman of the Special Committee on Energy Finance for developing countries and the Studies Committee.
Dr Gata also played an advisory and consultative role to the African Development Bank and Integrated Energy Systems Ltd (UK) on energy issues.
President Mnangagwa said in Zimbabwe, Dr Gata served as board chairman of the Rural Electrification Board.
“On behalf of the nation, the revolutionary party Zanu PF, Government, my family and myself, I wish to express deepest condolences to the Gata family, most especially to Mai Gata and the children during this period of profound grief,” he said.
“May they all be consoled and find comfort in knowing that the works of their father will forever be engraved in the chronicles of the history of our nation.
“Future generations will always be reminded of this great engineer through the great works he did for the nation. May his dear soul rest in eternal peace”.
