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Patrick Chitumba Midlands Bureau Chief
THE Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association has secured a $150 million loan from an Indian bank for the construction of three hospitals in the country.

The Export Import Bank of India has, according to the Minister Responsible for the Welfare of War Veterans, Cde Christopher Mutsvangwa, availed the loan.

Mutsvangwa told The Chronicle ZNLWA would build “global class” medical facilities in Harare, Bulawayo and Victoria Falls.

He was speaking on the sidelines of a two-day workshop on conducting democratic, free and fair elections for war veterans in Gweru on Wednesday.

Mutsvangwa said the association was working towards self-sustenance through coming up with business programmes.

He said President Mugabe had given the project thumbs up, adding that the hospitals would generate extra income for the freedom fighters’ welfare.

Mutsvangwa said an Indian team of experts and engineers would soon be in the country for site inspection of the places earmarked for construction of the hospitals

“The total budget for the hospitals is $150 million. We’re getting a lot of support from the Export Import Bank of India and they will be sending a team into the country soon,” said the Minister.

“We’re working with Indians to establish a global class medical service delivery system. We’re working with the Indian government and Indian financial agencies.”

He said the Shapoorji Pallonji Group, which is a Mumbai-based business conglomerate with interests in construction, real estate, textiles, engineering goods, home appliances, publications, power and biotechnology, was the major partner in the construction of the hospitals.

Mutsvangwa said the European Union, which was also re-engaging the government, also supported the project.

He said the EU had naturally realised that the war veterans were an important societal group which they had been overlooking in their programmes.

“I told the President and he was very happy that we’re managing to build bridges with the EU. We’re saying let bygones be bygones and we want to be friends with everybody,” said the war veterans chairman.

“They (EU, America) have a comparative advantage in terms of diseases, trauma or wounds and all those things associated with war time stress. They have an edge and we would like to tap into their expertise. So it’s good.”

Mutsvangwa said the war veterans were working closely with the Ministries of Health and Child Care, Tourism and Hospitality Industry and Local Government, Public Works and National Housing on the project.

Explaining the workshop, Mutsvangwa said since his association was preparing for elections in the coming months, they had engaged the Zimbabwe Election Commission to train them on how to conduct free and democratic elections.

He said the association’s leaders from all the country’s 10 provinces were at the workshop.

“We’re preparing for elections to fill up the low echelons of our structures so that the organisation can be functional up to the grassroots level.

“So we had our national elections in Masvingo last year, now we’re moving to fill up the provincial, district and even lower structures so that the organisation permeates from the top to the bottom,” said Cde Mutsvangwa.

He said the ZNLWA wanted to build a robust organisation which would be transparent and democratic, hence the need to engage ZEC.