Online Reporter
Wallace Ruzvidzo in New York, USA
RESTORING trust in the United Nations is critical as the world fragments into unilateralism against the founding principles of the global body, Foreign Affairs and International Trade Minister Professor Amon Murwira has said.
He was speaking to The Herald and ZBC ahead of the arrival of President Mnangagwa here today for the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA81), which is running under the theme: “Restoring trust, managing transformation: A United Nations that delivers for all.”
Prof Murwira said the theme had come at an opportune time as the world was drifting from multilateralism.
“The theme for this year is about restoring our trust. Restoring trust is a very important theme, because over the years His Excellency UN Secretary-General António Guterres has been mourning or bemoaning the loss of multilateralism as a way of managing global peace.
“And the world was fragmenting into unilateralism, into two blocks, instead of being one block, which is the United Nations, which is what was envisaged when the United Nations was formed in San Francisco in 1945.
“So restoring trust is such an important thing, because once we don’t have trust in the United Nations, it leads to the pulverisation of the international order as we know it,” said Prof Murwira.
Prof Murwira said President Mnangagwa’s attendance fulfils “a sacrosanct constitutional mandate” as Zimbabwe is one of 193 member states of the UN.
“His Excellency the President, when coming to New York to the United Nations, is fulfilling a sacrosanct constitutional mandate, because Zimbabwe is one of the 193 countries in the United Nations.
“Therefore, it becomes very important that His Excellency is coming,” he said.
The Minister said the President had set out a progressive foreign policy anchored on peace and security, upon which all other pillars of the economy rested.
President Mnangagwa’s participation comes months before Zimbabwe takes its seat as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for the 2027-2028 term, after garnering 96 per cent of the vote.
Prof Murwira said the resounding victory was a show of confidence in Harare.
“So the United Nations is particularly that organisation that stands for peace and security, which exactly explains why His Excellency the President made sure that we campaigned and we were trusted by the world to be in the Security Council.
“Now we have proven to the world that the world is behind Zimbabwe. So it is very important for His Excellency to be here and is here with wind beneath his wings, showing that Zimbabwe is part and parcel of the global community,” he said.
Minister Murwira said it was about time the UN adapted to present realities and acknowledged that the circumstances under which it was founded were fundamentally different from those of today.
“A United Nations that works for all is a United Nations that does not reflect 1945, but reflects 2026. And in 2026, 193 states are members of the United Nations; in 1945, most of the world, including Zimbabwe, were colonies, and there were some countries that were put in to represent us.
“But you know we are 46 years old as an independent sovereign state, and therefore we need equal treatment within the United Nations. For us to restore trust in the United Nations, it has to be representative of all the people of the world,” he said.
Tomorrow, President Mnangagwa will attend the high-level Zimbabwe Business Forum coordinated by ZimTrade, ZIDA and ZTA under the theme: “Global Challenges. Zimbabwean Solutions. Shared Prosperity”, aimed at unlocking financing for agriculture, mining and tourism.
The forum will bring together local companies, international buyers, investors, financiers and development partners as the country seeks to widen export markets, attract investment and strengthen commercial relations.
During the course of the week, High-level Meetings are scheduled for the participation of Heads of State and Government.
These will cover topics including the Right to Development, Climate Action and the Just Transition, the Existential Threats from Sea-Level Rise, Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response, the Adoption of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action, and the Commemoration and Promotion of the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons.
