Long live Munhumutapa!

MacDenias Moyo

There are moments in the life of a nation when history bends, when the trajectory of a people is altered by the vision and courage of one man.

Zimbabwe has entered such an epoch and it is fitting that the birthday of President Mnangagwa has now been enshrined as Munhumutapa Day, a national holiday that celebrates not only the life of the Head of State, but also the vitality and promise of the youth who are the custodians of posterity.

This day is not a mere commemoration of birth, it is a consecration of leadership, a recognition of the man who has carried the torch from the First Chimurenga through the Second, who stood firm in the crucible of the Third and who now presides over the Fourth Chimurenga of economic emancipation, technological advancement and national sovereignty.

President Mnangagwa’s life is inseparable from the liberation struggle. As a youth he lived colonial repression, was imprisoned and persecuted for daring to dream of a free Zimbabwe.

As an adult he still bears the scars of the struggle.

His role in the Second Chimurenga was not peripheral but central, a commander, strategist and loyal cadre who stood shoulder to shoulder with the giants of our revolution. His loyalty to the cause, his fidelity to the people and his unwavering commitment to the liberation of the motherland marked him as a man destined for greatness.

When the guns fell silent and independence was won, he did not retreat into comfort but continued to serve, building institutions, strengthening the state and preparing the ground for the future battles of sovereignty.

The Fourth Chimurenga, which he now leads, is not fought with rifles but with policies, with vision, with the instruments of governance and development.

Since assuming the mantle of leadership in 2017, President Mnangagwa has revived the nation from the ashes of stagnation.

Agriculture has been transformed through mechanisation, irrigation schemes and the Presidential Input Programme that has capacitated smallholder farmers. Mining has become the engine of growth, with gold, platinum, lithium and chrome driving exports and creating employment. Tourism has been rejuvenated, with Victoria Falls designated a financial hub and the nation marketed as a destination of peace and natural wonder. Energy sufficiency has been achieved through solar plants, hydro expansion and thermal rehabilitation, ensuring that the darkness of power shortages is banished. Industry and commerce have been revitalised, with new factories rising, SMEs flourishing and the ease of doing business reforms slashing levies and opening doors for entrepreneurs.

President Mnangagwa has introduced Key Performance Indicators for his Cabinet, a revolutionary act in governance that has transformed ministers from ceremonial figures into accountable stewards of progress. This system has ensured delivery, measurable outcomes and a culture of responsibility. Under his stewardship Vision 2030 has ceased to be a slogan and has become a living reality. The Transitional Stabilisation Programme laid the foundation, the National Development Strategy 1 consolidated gains and the National Development Strategy 2 is propelling the nation towards upper middle income status. Each of these frameworks has been meticulously crafted, each has yielded tangible results and together they form the architecture of a prosperous Zimbabwe.

The mantra “Zimbabwe is Open for Business” has not been empty rhetoric but a clarion call that has yielded dividends. Re-engagement with the international community has removed the stigma of pariah status.

The World Bank, the IMF, the African Development Bank and other global institutions have acknowledged Zimbabwe’s progress. The United Nations Security Council vote, the recognition by SADC and AU, the partnerships with Russia China, India and the European union all testify to a nation restored to dignity.

The policy of “Nyika inovakwa nevene vayo” has galvanised citizens to build their own country, to take ownership of development, to recognise that sovereignty is not gifted but constructed by the hands of patriots.

President Mnangagwa has become the Munhumutapa of our day, a modern emperor not of conquest but of vision, not of dominion but of development. His leadership has rendered the opposition impotent, their rhetoric reduced to noise, their accusations drowned by the symphony of delivery.

Roads have been resurfaced, dams constructed, bridges erected, clinics and schools built, industries opened and black-owned businesses have multiplied. Fuel shortages are a relic of the past, inflation has been tamed and the economy has stabilised.

The youth have not been forgotten, for Munhumutapa Day itself is proof to their centrality. Policies such as the National Youth Empowerment Strategy, vocational training centres, scholarships and entrepreneurship funds have been instituted to ensure that the young inherit not despair, but opportunity.

International organisations have testified to this growth. The World Bank has delisted Zimbabwe from fragile economies, the African Union has hailed the re-engagement drive, the United Nations Development Programme has acknowledged poverty alleviation and regional bodies have celebrated infrastructural development. These are not partisan voices, but global authorities affirming that Zimbabwe is on a positive path. The President’s stewardship has been vindicated, his vision validated, his leadership consecrated.

Munhumutapa Day is, therefore, more than a holiday. It is a covenant between the leader and the people, a recognition that the President’s life is intertwined with the destiny of the nation. It is a day when the youth are celebrated, for they are the heirs of the revolution, the builders of Vision 2030, the custodians of sovereignty. It is a day when the nation pauses to reflect on the journey from Chimurenga to Chimurenga, from struggle to struggle, from victory to victory. It is a day when Zimbabwe declares to the world that it has a leader who delivers, a leader who builds, a leader who embodies the spirit of Munhumutapa.

Long live Munhumutapa. Long live President Mnangagwa. Long live Zimbabwe. The future is secure, the path is clear, the vision is alive. The opposition may shout, detractors may whisper, cynics may sneer, but the reality is undeniable.

Zimbabwe is rising, Zimbabwe is prospering, Zimbabwe is sovereign. And at the helm stands the Munhumutapa of our age, the man who has delivered and continues to deliver, the man whose birthday is now a national covenant, the man whose life is the story of our nation.

Long live Munhumutapa!