daniel chigunwe
Tendai Rupapa Senior Reporter
TURKISH Ambassador to Zimbabwe Mr Hakan Kivanc has extended an invitation to First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa to meet her counterpart in his home country and described her as an inspiration, judging by her philanthropic work and empowerment projects which have transformed the lives of the vulnerable.
Ambassador Kivanc, who paid a courtesy call on the First Lady at her offices in Harare yesterday, said he appreciated Amai Mnangagwa’s work that was benefiting the elderly, youths, women, girls and people living with disabilities, among other groups.
He said the First Lady was an inspiration through her sterling work in various areas that include health, economic empowerment and the environment.
“She is extremely energetic and extremely inspiring. She is the captain of the ship in her area. As someone who has been in Zimbabwe, I am grateful and appreciate her work and hands-on approach.
“I am happy that the First Lady is creating income generating projects for the people of Zimbabwe with the view of empowering them and transforming their lives,” he said.
The ambassador said it was important that Amai Mnangagwa had also paid particular focus on issues affecting mainly women and girls.
“She is determined to empower women giving more emphasis on children and girls thus creating empowerment projects for their benefit.
“Besides women and girls, the First Lady is also embracing other sectors of the society and her involvement in the health delivery system as the ambassador (for health) is commendable. Also her Angel of Hope Foundation is touching lives of many in Zimbabwe,” he said.
Ambassador Kivanc said environmental protection was one of the key areas which should be emphasised and praised Amai Mnangagwa for her awareness campaigns and engagement of communities.
The First Lady is the country’s Patron for Environment, Climate, Tourism and Hospitality Industry.
He further said the work being done by Amai Mnangagwa was similar to what the First Lady of his country was doing and said he was eager to facilitate a meeting between the two.
“Both First Ladies are an essential part of the health system in their countries. There are a lot of areas that she is involved in the same way the Turkish First Lady is involved in. If the two First Ladies connect, they can talk and exchange ideas on their areas of interest so that their visions are fulfilled,” he said.
Ambassador Kivanc commended the cordial relations between Zimbabwe and Turkey.
“We have excellent relations. We want to contribute towards infrastructural projects in Zimbabwe mainly highway and railway projects. I hope that we will also bring Turkish Airlines here which will bring in not only passengers but cargo as well,” he said.
Furthermore, he said, they would continue offering scholarships for Zimbabwean students to study in Turkey.
The First Lady was grateful for the invite and said she was looking forward to meeting her counterpart to share notes since challenges affecting women were similar the world over.
“I am happy with this recognition from the Turkish Ambassador. The invitation is critical in strengthening my empowerment initiatives since sharing notes with my counterpart will help me because women are the same the world over and if we work together we get positive results. I shall continue helping the disadvantaged to transform their lives,” she said.
A hardworking and hands-on person, the First Lady has traversed the length and breadth of the country sowing seeds of hope and assisting those in need with food and resources to ease their situations.
She has also used her portfolio as health ambassador to spearhead awareness campaigns on cancer, HIV, TB and Covid-19 among other diseases.
News of the First Lady’s hard work, unprecedented in the history of the country, has reached far and wide and is getting international acclaim.
Online Reporter