Zanu-PF annual Indaba kicks off

Joseph Madzimure and Nqobile Tshili

THE Zanu-PF Annual National People’s Conference kicks off today with the economy and development issues taking centre stage as the ruling party forges ahead with its transformative agenda towards upper-middle-income status by 2030.

The conference will start with the convening of the Politburo in Harare today, followed by the Central Committee meeting tomorrow at the party’s headquarters.
Running under the theme; “Industrialise and Modernise Towards the Attainment of Vision 2030,” delegates are expected to travel to Bulawayo, the venue of the conference soon after the Central Committee meeting.

On Friday, the conference’s opening coincides with the SADC Anti Sanctions Day, with SADC chairman President Mnangagwa expected to deliver a keynote address. President Mnangagwa, who is also the Zanu-PF First Secretary, is expected to preside over the official opening of the conference.

On Saturday, party thematic committees will make presentations to the conference before President Mnangagwa officially closes the meeting. The focus of the conference will be anchored on the state of the economy, the party and the welfare of the people.

While during the First Republic, the National People’s Conference was hosted in December, the Second Republic shifted it to October to allow the party’s resolutions to align with the National Budget for the coming year.

As the party’s senior members meet in Harare today and tomorrow, in Bulawayo the stage has been set for a seamless conference later in the week with service providers busy finalising their works while accreditation of delegates and the media is on today.

“The conference is starting tomorrow with the meeting of the Politburo in Harare at the party’s headquarters. On Wednesday, we will be having a Central Committee meeting and Thursday will be the travelling day to Bulawayo and Friday and Saturday we will have our meetings in Bulawayo,” Zanu-PF secretary-general, Dr Obert Mpofu, said in an interview.

Zanu-PF Secretary for Information ,and Publicity, Ambassador Christopher Mutsvangwa said all is set for the official opening on Friday with food, accommodation and transport to ferry delegates already in place.

The conference will see a business expo running concurrently with the main event. “All the systems needed to cater for the delegates are already in place and it looks like it’s going to be a resounding success and very organised as usual.

“We are focused on the economic agenda and the President is a person who says ‘my works speak for themselves’. The last five years, have seen change in what the Government is doing in terms of economic performance,” said Ambassador Mutsvangwa.

He said among other things expected to be discussed are economic and social issues to ensure the country continues on its growth trajectory under the ruling party’s leadership.

“Conferences are very important because Zanu-PF is a party with structures, it communicates through its structures to its membership so when people come to the conference we are taking stock of our party policy. Remember party policy is what guides Government policy; the party is supreme,” said Cde Mutsvangwa.

“We will be looking at the macro-economic plans that we have, developments, how we are looking at countering perennial problems such as sanctions, how we are countering global warming. It’s a platform for the whole structure to sit down, introspect, suggest, develop and come out stronger.”

Earlier, Dr Mpofu had also reiterated that economic focus will be the main thrust of the conference and that this time around the number of delegates will be limited to ensure robust discussions.

“This year’s conference will see a reduced number of delegates as opposed to previous conferences. We are taking the approach of having leaner delegates to allow for more fruitful and practical deliberations,” said Dr Mpofu.

“Leaner delegations are the international gold standard as most conferences of this nature by similar political parties tend to have not more than 3 000 delegates. This will allow for a more focused conference and enable people to attend to more pressing issues.”

As the guide of Government, the party’s conference resolutions will influence policy, which must translate into projects and programmes for implementation to change the lives of the people for the better.

“It is our hope that delegates will come up with resolutions for implementation by the Government that will have a lasting positive impact on our economy, also drawing from the vision of His Excellency, National Development Strategy 1 and Vision 2030,” said Dr Mpofu.

Meanwhile, Bulawayo Provincial Affairs and Devolution Minister Judith Ncube, who is also a Politburo member, said it was time for Bulawayo to showcase its hospitable culture.

“Already signs are showing that Bulawayo is hosting the conference.

“We have increased traffic of individuals coming to Bulawayo, some of them came earlier before the commencement of the conference as they are service providers,” she said.

“This is important, we are excited as a province and we appreciate that Bulawayo has been selected to host the conference.”

The Second Republic has embarked on a series of economic reforms aimed at revitalising Zimbabwe’s economy and setting it on a path towards achieving Vision 2030, a blueprint for transforming the nation into an upper-middle-income economy.

Central to these reforms is the emphasis on leveraging Zimbabwe’s abundant natural resources, fostering a conducive business environment and attracting foreign investment to drive economic growth.

The Government has introduced policies to attract investment in the mining sector, streamline regulations, and promote sustainable exploitation of these resources for the benefit of the economy and its citizens.

The Second Republic also continues to successfully implement people-centric, life-changing and high-impact programmes and projects across all sectors of the economy through homegrown solutions and exploitation of the country’s natural resources.

Under the leadership of President Mnangagwa, the Government continues to register landmark achievements towards the betterment of Zimbabweans. Tangible programmes and projects have been delivered with agriculture, mining, social services and transport leading the transformative agenda.

Accelerating the construction of high-impact dams in a bid to increase the area of crops under irrigation is one of the key milestones. Some of the dams include Gwayi Shangani Dam, Kunzvi Dam, Bindura, Tuli Manyange, Semwa, Vungu and Defe Dopota.

In the past five years, the Government has also taken bold steps to construct Zimbabwe’s roads, which marks significant progress in infrastructure development, paving the way for better connectivity and facilitating economic growth.