ZNCC honours Prof Bhebe

Gweru (New Ziana) – Founding Vice Chancellor of Midlands State University, Professor Emeritus Ngwebi Mulunge Bhebe, and two other prominent leaders have been honoured by the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce Midlands Chapter for their pioneering work, which has had a huge impact in the region and beyond.

Prof Bhebe, who is also a trustee of the Zimbabwe Mass Media Trust (ZIMMT), was honoured with a Lifetime Achievement award together with Image Modelling Agency founder Mavis Koslek, and Dendairy owner, Neville Coetzee.

Although the award is meant to celebrate an individual’s contribution to the betterment of life in the Midlands province, in the case of Prof Bhebe and Coetzee, the impact of their leadership was national and regional.

In his acceptance speech, Prof Bhebe said although the economy was facing strong headwinds at the moment, there was light at the end of the tunnel, and called for patience and perseverance.

He said government was giving priority to resolving the economic challenges, citing the recently introduced import duty waivers on a variety of basic commodity products, among other things.

The move, while posing a temporal challenge to local manufacturers, would offer a welcome relief to the public, he said.

“While acknowledging the progress of industry which is supported by the fact that over 70 percent of shelf space is occupied by locally made products, the Zimbabwean business community finds that the suspension of duty on imports is a challenge,” Prof Bhebe said.

“For our country to move forward, the business community must take leadership and set the pace on where the economy should go while exhibiting resilience and strong adherence to the rules and regulations governing their respective operations,” he added.

In addition to the three recipients, several other personalities in the region also received other awards for their contribution to the development and betterment of life in the Midlands province.

New Ziana