Editorial Comment: Easing of Zimbabwe, EU tensions welcome

ZIMBABWE has been making slow but steady progress in its re-engagement efforts with the European Union and this week the EU-Zim relations took a significant step forward with a five-member British trade delegation visiting Zimbabwe.

This is a milestone event given that it is the first time in more than 20 years that a British government sponsored team has been in Zimbabwe and marks the first stage in the normalisation of relations with Britain. We sincerely hope this is the beginning of a genuine relationship between the United Kingdom and its former colony premised on a mutual respect.

The delegation, led by British Expertise director Alexander Lambeth, has been holding meetings both in the private and public sectors since Tuesday to understand Zimbabwe’s development objectives and where international expertise could come in. “We hope that our visit will be a chance to build long-term relationships with Zimbabwean partners,” Lambeth said.

The delegation comprises consultancy firms that help British companies develop their businesses internationally. The companies include British Expertise, Ecorys UK, Turner and Townsend, Roughton International and WYG International.

Addressing a press briefing after meeting with the five-member delegation, Finance and Economic Development Minister Patrick Chinamasa described the engagement as a very productive one. He said the British delegation was also in the country to investigate how they can assist the implementation of our five-year economic blueprint, the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio- Economic Transformation.

“I consider this visit very significant, very significant in that it is marking the first step in our normalisation of relations between the United Kingdom and Zimbabwe, but we all must understand that the normalisation of relations, political or economic, is not an event it’s a process, but what I am very happy about is that their visit marks that first step we are taking to normalise our relations,” he said.

“I have told them basically what I have been telling every would-be investor that Zimbabwe is open to investment from any quarter, they must feel welcome now and into the future.” British ambassador to Zimbabwe Catriona Laing expressed confidence that this would be the re-birth of mutually beneficial economic relations.

She said her government was committed to providing necessary support to companies that wanted to invest in Zimbabwe. “If this visit goes well then the companies will be coming back on their own under their financial steam and obviously we will provide some logistical support that’s why this visit is very important because it will hopefully lead on to the private sector coming back and pursuing the opportunities that they have identified in this scoping visit,” Laing said.

The visit by the British delegation comes as other European countries have been exploring business opportunities in Zimbabwe. Belgium already has a solid trade relationship with Zimbabwe particularly in the diamond sector. Zimbabwe’s gems have been auctioned at the Antwerp auction floors in Belgium.

Next week, the Danish trade and development cooperation minister is set to visit Zimbabwe for high level meetings with government to assess progress on projects funded by the Nordic country. According to the Danish embassy, Mogens Jensen will be in the country from November 5 to 7, making him the first senior politician from a Western nation to visit the country since the July 31 elections last year and underlining Denmark’s willingness to normalise relations with Zimbabwe.

The thawing in relations between the EU and Zimbabwe comes as the bloc is set to further ease sanctions imposed on the country more than a decade ago. Reports said the new EU Ambassador to Zimbabwe Philippe Van Damme was yesterday expected to announce their position on whether or not they would remove the remaining illegal sanctions on Zimbabwe.

The EU has been rolling over the sanctions every February since 2002 but this year the bloc lifted a significant portion of the embargo, saying a decision on the remaining measures would be taken on November 1. If it removes the sanctions in their totality, this will mean that Zimbabwe can now directly engage with the EU on a bilateral level unlike the current scenario where the bloc channels its humanitarian support through non-governmental organisations.

The EU has removed most senior government officials from its sanctions list, but left President Mugabe, his family and service chiefs. It has also not lifted trade sanctions that would allow direct engagement between the EU and Harare. Be that as it may, we are encouraged by the gradual thawing of tensions between the EU and Zimbabwe and hope this is the start of better things to come.

Zimbabwe has always maintained that its dispute with the West stems from its quarrel with the UK over the land reform programme. Now that Britain itself is taking steps to normalise relations, the future can only be bright.

 

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