Online Reporter
George Maponga-Masvingo Bureau
THE Second Republic has reiterated its commitment to improving the welfare of the country’s liberation struggle veterans with both monetary and non-monetary benefits as part of a drive to make Zimbabwe an upper middle income economy guided by President Mnangagwa’s “leaving no one and no place behind’’ mantra.
Veterans of the Liberation Struggle Affairs Minister Senator Monica Mavunga yesterday said plans were in motion to make sure the country’s liberation struggle veterans get all their statutory benefits while work is intensified to make sure they also get non-monetary benefits in all sectors of the economy.
Speaking on the sidelines of her ministry’s strategic planning workshop at Clever’s Hotel on the shore of Lake Mutirikwi yesterday, the Cabinet minister said her ministry would continue to cajole the treasury to make sure that war collaborators and other struggle veterans get their benefits.
Minister Mavunga said their retreat in Masvingo would craft her ministry’s 4-year plan, running from next year to 2030 in conformity with the National Development Strategy 2.
“Our workshop here is being attended by various actors within our ministry to come up with a strategic plan that encompasses our roadmap from 2026 to 2030 that speaks to all the challenges and problems that affect our liberation struggle veterans,’’ she said.
The formation of the Ministry of Veterans of the Liberation Struggle Affairs in 2023 by President Mnangagwa and his administration when the NDS1 was already in motion created a good basis for Minister Mavunga’s ministry to craft strategies that will create a fully empowered struggle veteran by the year 2030.
“We are happy that President Mnangagwa opened many opportunities for struggle veterans in such sectors such as mining, agriculture and even tourism, and during this week-long strategic plan my ministry will be crafting various strategies that we hope will help improve the lot of our war veterans.’’
According to Minister Mavunga, veterans were still facing an array of challenges, especially in terms of accessing their statutory benefits such as payment of school fees for their children, medical care expenses and even funeral assistance.
She pledged to continue nudging the Government through the Ministry of Finance to make sure the budgetary vote for war veterans was increased to help meet all their statutory benefits timeously, while efforts were underway to make sure various business enterprises under the ambit of the Veterans of the Liberation Struggle Affairs become profitable and start contributing towards the welfare of struggle veterans.
Minister Mavhunga also promised that her ministry would continue to press the Government to make sure that benefits for war collaborators, who underwent vetting, were gazetted for them to start accessing benefits.
