Mugabe full speech at the official opening of Parliament

President Robert Mugabe today mapped the way forward for Zimbabwe for the coming year when he officially opened the fourth session of the eighth Parliament of Zimbabwe during which several laws meant to improve the country’s economy will be introduced or amended.

Mugabe said the economy is projected to grow by a paltry 1.2 percent this year but the International Monetary Fund has painted a bleaker picture projecting it to contract by -0.3 percent.

Below is Mugabe’s full speech:

HIS EXCELLENCY, THE PRESIDENT OF ZIMBABWE, being seated in the Chair, was pleased to address Parliament as follows:

Madame President of the Senate,
Mr. Speaker, Sir,
Honourable Members of Parliament,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Comrades and Friends.

The Fourth Session of the 8th Parliament comes at a time when the process of realigning our laws to the Constitution is still work-in-progress. As such, several Bills will be brought for realignment by Parliament during this Session.

Bills to be brought before Parliament include the Constitutional Court Bill, the Rural District Council Bill, the Traditional Leaders Bill, the Prisons Bill and the Marriages Bill. The Coroner’s Office Bill, which will pave way for the setting up of the Coroner’s Office responsible for medico-legal investigations, will also be brought before this august House.

Madame President, Mr. Speaker, Sir,

The growing incidence of droughts in Zimbabwe presents a clarion call for all of us to build capacity to effectively cope with disasters related to climate change. Government has embarked on the implementation of climate change adaptation and mitigation programmes throughout the country. This Session of Parliament is thus expected to ratify the Paris Agreement which allows the country to benefit from programmes on climate change. The Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilisation, will also be tabled for ratification and accession.

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