Mnangagwa says his re-engagement policy is now paying off

Zimbabwe’s foreign policy under the Second Republic has unfolded under our desire to engage and re-engage.

Engagement has enabled us to broaden our embrace beyond the scope and geography of traditional diplomacy, thereby cultivating new friendships and partnerships.

Re-engagement has allowed us to win back old friends and partners we had lost over the years for various reasons, including those related to our determination to recover our land, and to pursue a nationally minded, independent foreign policy.

Both these initiatives have actualised our sworn persuasion and desire to become a country which is a friend to all nations and an enemy to none.

In our quest and effort to engage and re-engage, we have foregrounded transactional diplomacy which puts economic interests at the top, and which requires that we make our country open for business.

To that end, we have made several reforms, all of them aimed at attracting both domestic and foreign capital.

All these considerations sum up the whys and wherefores of our diplomacy.

I am very happy that 2022 is set to end on a high and, therefore, happy note insofar as our diplomacy is concerned.

Barely two weeks ago, we played host to a Commonwealth assessment mission.

The purpose of that Mission was to gauge our readiness to re-join the Commonwealth Club, thereby fulfilling one goal of our re-engagement policy.

Beyond the economic, trade and skills benefits we stand to derive from our re-joining the Commonwealth family of nations, there is much to be got when we push for and pursue our global interests as a broad bloc of like-minded nations with a shared past and convergent set of values.

Zimbabwe stands to profit from belonging to many groupings in the world, and using such groupings all the time to increase her clout globally.

It is this goal which is motivating us to make similar overtures to BRICS, with the ultimate objective of becoming a worthwhile member.

Zimbabwe’s vastly improved rating in global circles is evident in how our candidature to various international bodies continues to succeed on the back of multinational support spanning across the ideological spectrum.

Our consolidated position in SADC and the African Union has enabled us to use our membership to both to mobilise global support for our nationals vying for various posts in international organisations.

For that reason, we have secured leadership positions in many organisations, foremost the Pan-African Parliament (PAP) and in the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

Next year will see us hosting several international conferences for various global agencies. Our global profile thus continues to rise.

I am in constant communication with our all-weather friends, principally the top leadership of the People’s Republic of China, and of the Russian Federation. The People’s Republic of China, with which we enjoy Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, continues to register a strong footprint in our country’s economy.

Several iconic projects have either concluded or are underway. Just last week, the new, majestic Parliament Building built for us by the Chinese government under a generous grant opened its doors to business.

Earlier in the year, I was in Davos, Switzerland, where our delegation made a strong showing.

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