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Wallace Ruzvidzo, Harare Bureau

The Second Republic will continue implementing further reforms to improve the livelihoods of Zimbabweans, building on the country’s current economic growth momentum, President Mnangagwa has said.

In his remarks on Monday at the announcement of the 2024 Performance Evaluation Results and 2025 Performance Contracts Signing Ceremony held at State House in Harare, the President reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to implementing sweeping reforms as the country moves closer to achieving upper-middle-income economic status by 2030.

“The world over, Governments are no longer measured by the promises they make to the people and the credibility of their plans, but by high performance, efficient resource utilisation, and the delivery of quality services.

“In our case, this (event) attests to the work culture being institutionalised to enhance performance and accountability across the public sector, for high-impact results,” he said.

President Mnangagwa stated that the Government was rolling out a range of initiatives that would allow ordinary Zimbabweans to assess the country’s forward momentum towards achieving national goals.

“Undoubtedly, Performance Contracting, introduced in 2021, has had a propelling effect and enabled stakeholders, including ordinary citizens, to assess progress made by Ministries, Departments and Agencies in achieving targets set out in the National Development Strategy and Vision 2030.

“It is commendable that since the introduction of performance contracting, we have witnessed notable milestones across all sectors. The growing culture of accountability, integrity, efficiency, and effectiveness is also applauded,” he said.

The President then renewed his pledge to instil a culture of discipline, transparency, and results-driven governance among public servants.

“Meanwhile, Performance Contracts and the internalisation of Integrated Result-Based Management principles are driving programming and a new work ethic within Government. Furthermore, the performance ratings, awards, and recommendations have also enhanced policy and structural responsiveness, while injecting positive competition among MDAs,” he said.

Digitalisation, President Mnangagwa added, was a critical aspect of the country’s modernisation and industrialisation drive, and clear deadlines would be set for digital adoption targets.

“The Second Republic, under my leadership, will continue with its modernisation drive by digitalising services and improving efficiencies in all administrative processes. Clear deadlines must now be issued, requiring that relevant online services be deployed across the public sector to improve convenience for our citizenry.

“The provision of online services should be a key result area of your performance evaluation,” he said.
In line with global standards, the President stated that the Government was working towards certifying MDAs to improve standardisation, quality, and risk management.