Online Reporter
Kuda Bwititi, Zimpapers Politics Hub
EQUATORIAL Guinea President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo’s scheduled visit to Zimbabwe on Saturday is poised to build directly on the historic accords signed between the two nations during President Mnangagwa’s 2023 state visit to Malabo.
President Mnangagwa undertook a three-day state visit to Equatorial Guinea from February 6 to 8, 2023, at the invitation of President Nguema. The highlight of that trip was the signing of several memoranda of understanding (MoUs) aimed at deepening bilateral co-operation.
These MoUs spanned key sectors, including agriculture, mining, tourism, visa reciprocity, a Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (Bippa), infrastructure and transport, as well as civil aviation accident investigation.
Now, the agreements are expected to be operationalised through the first-ever session of the Joint Permanent Commission on Cooperation (JPCC) between Harare and Malabo.
The JPCC will be inaugurated ahead of President Nguema’s arrival. A preparatory meeting of senior officials, co-chaired by Foreign Affairs Permanent Secretary Ambassador Albert Ranganai Chimbindi and his Equatorial Guinean counterpart, Mr Matias Nguema Mba Medja, will lay the groundwork for the ministerial talks on Saturday.
In a statement, Foreign Affairs and International Trade Ministry spokesperson Mrs Philisiwe Chidawanyika confirmed that the Ministers’ JPCC will be co-chaired by Zimbabwe’s Foreign Affairs and International Trade Minister, Professor Amon Murwira, and Equatorial Guinea’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Mr Simeon Oyono Sono Angue.
“Deliberations will focus on progress in the implementation of the agreements and MoUs signed during President Mnangagwa’s state visit in February 2023,” she said.
“They will also explore opportunities for mutually beneficial co-operation in investment, road and air transport, agriculture, mining, fisheries, culture, tourism and energy.”
Speaking at the signing ceremony of the MoUs in 2023, President Mnangagwa said both leaders were “determined to deepen and consolidate relations between the two countries going forward.”
