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Stephen Mpofu
Endorsement by the United Nations of Zimbabwe’s economic recovery initiatives should ring true to both this country’s friends and foes.

The move should also be considered as a vote of confidence by the world body in the direction the Zanu-PF government is taking the country out of the woods to usher in a brave new social and economic future.

In a statement published in newspapers this week, the UN lauded measures the government is taking — which include rapprochement with financial donors and a rescheduling of debt clearance — to boost economic growth.

“We, the United Nations, would like to pledge our full support to the on-going economic and budgetary reform measures being implemented by the government to improve social and economic well-being of the people of Zimbabwe,” the global body said.

For once in a long while Zimbabweans not only have a glimmer of hope for the future, but can see a bright beam of light ahead of them ignited by the UN’s statement which certainly assures them that, in spite of iniquitous economic sanctions imposed by the West to protest land reform, all is not lost after all.

What is even more vivifying to spirits that had decidedly sagged as Zimbabweans understandably believed that the world at large had turned its back on them — except for this country’s all weather friends and liberation-war allies in the East — is the pledge by the UN to continue to work with the government with its implementation of measures contained in the mid-year fiscal review of 2015.

In its statement the UN said: “We reiterate our support for the formation and implementation of policies that will positively contribute to improving the well being of all Zimbabweans”.

Among these policies are those that the government is implementing to pave way for increased infusions of foreign capital from potential investors who had been made to develop cold feet by those calling for regime change to replace the liberation movement government and replace it with one kow-towing to imperialists and with the help of Machiavellian sections of the local press, hobby horses for opposition political parties.

What gives Zimbabweans an additional cheer to the UN’s unequivocal promise to walk its own economic and social pledge is the coincidental beeline that international investors are making to Zimbabwe right now.

It is predictable that the queue for potential investors to this country will lengthen as those seeking to do business with our mineral-endowed country are buoyed by the thumbs-up Zimbabwe has received from the UN.

What is even more encouraging for Zimbabwean businesses yearning for partnerships with foreign investors is that so far no hint has been dropped about harsh conditionalities that foreign investors are known to impose on their financial assistance to some African countries.

Closer to home, for instance, foreign investors are known to have told Malawi to expunge ghost workers in order to qualify for external financial assistance.

But — who knows — the same conditionality would also have accompanied any foreign capital sought by Zimbabwe save for the fact that our government took the wind out of the sails of potential investors as it were by carrying out an exercise to weed out any ghost workers who reap where they did not sow.

The anti-corruption campaign underway in the country should go a long way in posting a clean record of clear financial management so that those willing to invest in our country will not remain too close with their hard-earned money, fearing they might fritter it away in a foreign country to be goggled by embezzlers, instead of the investment reaping handsome dividends for the investor.

It therefore behoves on every Zimbabwean to eschew any and every temptation to pilfer money entrusted to them for safe keeping and re-deployment for greater economic growth in the country.

It is also to be hoped that after the UN has clearly given the world at large the all-clear to do business with Zimbabwe certain sections of the local media and their drivers will hence forth stop their campaign of demonisation which has lately seen the First Lady, Cde Grace Mugabe, being targeted. The private media is trying to drive a wedge between her and Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa, for instance, with claims that she wants to usurp his vice presidency, and that she wants to replace President Mugabe at the top office in the land when the incumbent leader leaves office.

The goodies that the First Lady and Secretary of the Women’s League, Cde Grace Mugabe, has been distributing during her rallies to meet the people are being cited by both the local opposition and the foreign press as campaign gimmicks for her to find a way into the hearts and minds of the masses in order for them to vote her into office.

The campaign to pull her down continues even after her denial to the designs attributed to her by those hell-bent on causing confusion in the country, especially in the long run-up to the general elections in 2018.

Or are Zimbabweans witnessing a diversified campaign by the sworn enemies of the First Family to discredit them in the eyes of both Zimbabweans
and the international community as a way of trying to get President Mugabe out of office by any means possible to them, and in that way exact regime change and with it the demise of land reform which has seen many Zimbabweans regaining their birthright, not withstanding corrupt activities in the reallocation of large farm sub-divisions by some officials whose place must be behind bars, and not in air-conditioned offices?

Zimbabwe’s future belongs to all Zimbabweans and, as such, the people of this country must work together to uphold the independence and freedom for which some people died wedging the armed struggle. What even those seeking to get into power by hook or crook apparently do not realise is that if they cause chaos through their divisive actions such as tribalism or factionalism and the country is set on fire the resultant violence will not spare them or their families either.

The deadly political divisions in which Africa’s newest State, South Sudan, is engulfed should serve as an eye-opener and as a deterrent for those Zimbabweans who want to ride roughshod over people’s voting rights to get into power, whether the masses approve or disapprove of the method they use to achieve such a goal.