For the moment though his concerns over Mnangagwa’s ability to deliver don’t seem to trouble many Zimbabweans.
Right now it seems Mnangagwa can do little wrong in the eyes of many Zimbabweans. Just last weekend using the commonly used abbreviation ‘ED’ the letters of Mnangagwa’s first names, Emmerson Dambudzo, the prominent Zimbabwe newspaper, The Sunday Mail, applauded the President’s recent visit to China.
‘ED returns with a bagful,’ the newspaper declared in a reference to Mnangagwa’s successful securing of billion dollars’ worth of investment for projects in Zimbabwe. Others too are keen to invest especially in what they see as Zimbabwe’s chance to enhance its journey towards full democracy.
On Monday at Mbare’s Stodart Community Hall, the European Union’s (EU) Commissioner for International Development, Neven Mimica, who had just met President Mnangagwa signed an agreement with Zimbabwean officials that will see new EU -funded programmes worth 23 million euros launched to improve people’s access to health services and enhance their livelihoods.
This was the first high level EU visit to Zimbabwe in almost decade. Coming as it does just before the election, it says much about the EU’s hopes for the country given that such financial support comes with conditions requiring improvement in Zimbabwe’s democratic process and transition.
Only time will tell whether such confidence is justified. But for now in Zimbabwe, a country with long historical links to Scotland, a new mood prevails.
As President Mnangagwa himself has said; “Zimbabwe is now open for business.”
By David Pratt- Scottish Herald
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