Zim-Asset to be reviewed

Lloyd Gumbo Senior Reporter
Government will review the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation mid next month as it seeks to align the economic blueprint with the Sustainable Development Goals approved by the United Nations General Assembly last month.

Zimbabwe has already come up with a position paper where it identifies 10 of the 17 SDGs as priority areas for implementation.

Speaking at a media breakfast meeting organised by the Government of Zimbabwe and the United Nations in Harare yesterday, Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet, Misheck Sibanda, said the country was committed to the successful implementation of the SDGs.

The meeting coincided with the 70th anniversary of the United Nations.

“As Government, we are going to be having our mid-term review of the ZimAsset coupled also with our country position paper where we will be further fine-tuning the programme so that it fits in more squarely with the needs or demands of the SDGs,” he said.

“We will take on board comments that have been articulated by the UN system in developing our concept paper which will assist us as we map the way forward.

“I also want to reiterate publicly that we will be working closely with the UN Country Team as well as development partners in shaping the way forward in our mid-term review, which will be held in three weeks from today.”

Sibanda said there was need for all stakeholders among them the executive, the legislature, the judiciary, the private sector, the academia and various demographic groups to work together in pursuance of successful implementation of the SDGs.

He said Zimbabwe was expected to find it easy in implementing the SDGs given that it had institutional mechanisms in place.

“As we approach 2016, there is need that we strive to align the ZUNDAF (Zimbabwe United Nations Development Assistance Framework) to the country’s socio-economic blueprint, Zim-Asset. Moreso, the UN system and development partners are shifting focus from humanitarian to development support.

“As we mark the journey from MDGs to SDGs, I’m sure all of you here share my conviction that with resolve, determination and commitment by all key stakeholders, the SDGs are a guaranteed success. We made it in the past as we consulted together.

“I’m very sure that again together, we will have success in the implementation of the SDGs. I appreciate on behalf of Government for all the support we get from the UN, its agencies and development partners who are now eager to re-engage us following the successful Lima (Peru) process where our debt clearance strategy was considered positive,” he said.

Presenting Zimbabwe’s position paper, permanent secretary in the Ministry of Macro-Economic Planning and Investment Promotion, Desire Sibanda, said Government identified priority goals for implementation.

The SDGs are goal eight that promotes sustained, inclusive and sustainable growth, full and productive employment.

He said this was important if the country was to create wealth which would then be channelled to the social sectors, create economic opportunities for citizens to go into business or to become gainfully employed.

Goal seven seeks to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all with Sibanda saying energy was critical for all sectors of the economy to be fully functional and productive.

Sibanda said goal two that seeks to end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture was critical since Zimbabwe was an agro-based economy.

Goal nine on building resilient infrastructure, inclusive and sustainable industrialisation as well as fostering innovation would be prioritised because they were key to promoting sustainable economic growth since infrastructural development was also identified in Zim-Asset and the 10-point plan enunciated by President Mugabe during his State of the Nation Address.

Water and sanitation which is goal six was also critical in that no sector could function without water.

Sibanda said water and sanitation were key enablers in the Zim-Asset and the 10-point plan.

He said goal 17 that seeks to strengthen the means of implementation and revitalization of the global partnership for sustainable development was critical in that domestically mobilised resources were not enough to finance the SDG agenda.

As such, Sibanda said the country needed both foreign and domestic investment for it to grow since private sector had been identified in the 10-point plan as critical in the 10-point plan.

He said goals three and four that focus on health and education respectively were enablers of any economic growth.

Goal 13 that prioritises combating climate change was important in that the economy depended heavily on the environment, as such, it was important to combat it and its negative impact on the environment.

The last prioritised goal is gender and women empowerment (goal five) that seeks to ensure that women and girls were economically empowered to achieve their full potential.

Said Sibanda: “Focus on the above mentioned goals will trigger activity in the remaining seven, leading to the ultimate goal of eliminating poverty in all its forms everywhere.”

The meeting was attended by UN Resident Coordinator Bishow Parajuli, representatives from UN agencies, permanent secretaries and other senior Government officials.