Dubai (New Ziana) – Every Zimbabwean, both at home and in the diaspora, has a responsibility to advance the country’s engagement and re-engagement agenda, in concert with government efforts, a senior government official has said.
The Second Republic is pursuing the engagement and re-engagement agenda as part of its Vision 2030 program, under which the government seeks to transform the country into an upper-middle income economy.
Expo2020-Dubai, Zimbabwe commissioner general ambassador Mary Mubi said it was important to transform the negative narrative on Zimbabwe.
“For every government official who leaves the airport at Harare, there are probably a hundred who go on trips for various reasons from business to churches, you are creating networks so engagement is not just about government, it is not just the work of Ministers, it (is) your work too as you go out,” she said.
“But, you have to have a clear message to promote trade and investment in key sectors of the economy as well as attract more visitors to Zimbabwe, to clarify Zimbabwe’s policies and processes through a unified and simplified message.”
Mubi said this during a women’s conference held on the sidelines of Expo2020-Dubai which was organised by the Red Lipstick Revolution, a women’s empowerment organisation.
She said advancing the re-engagement agenda was of great benefit to every Zimbabwean.
“Sadly, some of the most damaging narratives, sometimes, come from some of us who have left the country, but when Zimbabwe rises, your fortunes as Zimbabweans also rise.
“When people think that Zimbabwe is a country not worth considering, whether you are in the UK or Australia, your worth also falls with it. So you have an obligation to ensure that you raise your nation because it is tied to your fortunes,” she said.
Founder and commander-in-chief of the Red Lipstick Revolution, Dr Abigail Magwenzi said women were ready to play their role in Zimbabwe’s development agenda.
“We came here under our brand, Zim Women Do Dubai because we also felt that Dubai is a strategic place and that it is a miracle in the desert. They have done things that defy logic, it is the power of vision, in Zimbabwe we have vision 2030 and we are saying that as women we do not want to be left behind, we want to be a part of it,” she said.
New Ziana