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Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi

Nqobile Tshili, Chronicle Correspondent
THE situation at the country’s embassies has improved tremendously under President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s administration, a Cabinet Minister has revealed.

The Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, Cde Ziyambi Ziyambi, told Senators  during a Question and Answer session on Thursday that the embassies had been capacitated.

Zanu-PF Mashonaland West Senator Cde Mike Musaka had asked the Minister how the country would achieve the “Zimbabwe is open for business” mantra while embassies were struggling in their operations.

“I am just asking what exactly is being done to empower the embassies to do business.

“ Those embassies are lacking, they do not have the instruments,” said Senator Musaka.

Cde Ziyambi said Senators should have an appreciation that embassies were operating in a similar environment as the country,                                              which is affected by challenges such as cash shortages.

He, however, said the new administration has improved the state of embassies as they play a critical role in the country’s re-engagement agenda.

“What I want to say is that it is not correct that the situation has not improved since the new dispensation came into power.

“Significant payments have been done to our embassies abroad and the Foreign Minister has met most of our embassies to explain the new foreign policy thrust and we believe that with the direction that we are moving in, our ambassadors are pretty much happy with the situation,” said Cde Ziyambi.

In 2016, the Government revealed that the country’s embassies were facing lawsuits for failing to pay nearly $7 million in rentals in host countries.

Testifying before Parliament then, Foreign Affairs permanent secretary Ambassador Joey Bimha said Government had slashed allowances for its diplomats to contain its debt.

He said some of the diplomats had even abandoned their official residences for rented accommodation because they were no longer habitable while others left as part of measures to contain arrears over rentals that continued to escalate. — @nqotshili