Online Reporter
Wallace Ruzvidzo
Herald Reporter
ZIMBABWE and Belarus are working on modernising Harare’s grain facilities and providing vaccines, with a longer-term plan to establish a vaccine manufacturing plant in the country, Belarusian Ambassador to Zimbabwe Yury Nikalaichyk has said.
Responding to questions from The Herald and ZBC at State House in Harare on Thursday last week, Ambassador Nikalaichyk said officials and companies from Harare and Minsk were developing details of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for signing by the two governments.
He said the MoU would formalise areas of cooperation, including support for vaccine supply and infrastructure development aimed at strengthening Zimbabwe’s agricultural security.
Ambassador Nikalaichyk said the discussions were at the fine print stage, as both sides moved towards implementation of agreed priorities.
Zimbabwe and Belarus maintain strong strategic and economic relations, anchored by high-level diplomatic visits between Presidents Mnangagwa and Aleksandr Lukashenko.
Cooperation focuses heavily on agricultural mechanisation such as the supply of Belarusian tractors and harvesters, mining, defence, infrastructure, and healthcare partnerships.
Already, Zimbabwe and Belarus are spearheading the implementation of multi-phased farm mechanisation programmes supplying tractors, grain harvesters, and storage complexes.
“Indeed, we plan to enhance our cooperation in the agricultural sector in various spheres, including modernisation of grain storage facilities,” he said.
“We are elaborating on such a project now, including the supply of veterinary vaccines for Zimbabwe.
“Now, companies from Belarus and Zimbabwe, together with relevant authorities, are working on the MOU and the roadmap, how to move forward, starting from supply to establishing a joint venture here for production of some veterinary medicines as a final goal of this cooperation.”
He said from there, the two countries would move to increased cooperation with young farmers’ associations in the country, prioritising knowledge transfer in the agricultural sector.
“Now, we continue to implement the third phase of the agricultural mechanisation facility programme,” said Ambassador Nikalaichyk. “It goes on, we supply more machinery for Zimbabwe agriculture. We, as well, elaborate on cooperation with the Young Farmers Association and, of course, agricultural education.”The third phase of the Zimbabwe-Belarus Mechanisation Programme is valued at US$169 million and aims to supply over 3 000 high-tech tractors and 80 combine harvesters to boost national food security and bridge the country’s farming equipment gap.
Ongoing consignments, including batches of 90 high-tech tractors, continue to arrive to scale up seasonal crop and winter wheat production.
Before answering the questions from The Herald and ZBC, the Belarusian diplomat had sat in on an interview done by Belarus’ National Televison with President Mnangagwa, which Ambassador Nikalaichyk said was in fulfilment of the MoU signed by the Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services and his country, on cooperation in the field of information and press during President Mnangagwa’s State visit to Minsk last year. He then stressed the importance of consolidating bilateral ties between the two countries.
“And this interview was mostly dedicated to the development of bilateral friendly ties between our two nations and the efforts that the Government of Zimbabwe pays to the economic development and bringing sustainable development to your country,” said the Belarusian Ambassador. “In 2025, during the visit of His Excellency (President Mnangagwa) to Belarus, there was an MOU signed between the two Ministries of Information which aimed at promoting more media collaboration between the two countries, including interviews, exchange of TV crews, exchange of media delegations, and some other sectors.”
He said during his tenure in Harare, which began earlier this year, he would see to it that the MoU on media cooperation is implemented fully.
“And one of my goals, as an ambassador, is to make this MOU be implemented. And today’s (Thursday) interview is a good first small step towards this cooperation,” he said.
