Zimbabwe - The African Mirror

Oct

2023

Zimbabwe wants new IMF staff-monitored programme by April

ZIMBABWE hopes to agree on a new staff-monitored programme with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) by April next year, with an IMF team due to visit later this month for initial talks, its finance minister said. "Our intention is that by the time we go for the Spring Meetings in April 2024, we should have signed off on a staff-monitored programme," Mthuli Ncube told reporters in Marrakech at the IMF and World Bank Annual Meetings. "It will focus on maintaining discipline on the fiscal front and continue fine-tuning our exchange rate system and maintaining a tight monetary policy." An IMF…

Oct

2023

By TONDERAI GONORENDA and NYASHA CHINGONO

Zimbabwe searches for mine survivors as relatives lose hope

NEWS

ZIMBABWEAN authorities were still searching for survivors trapped underground when a disused gold mine collapsed last week, as some relatives started to lose hope their loved ones could be saved. Accidents in disused mines are common in Zimbabwe, where artisanal or small-scale miners defy authorities by mining in old shafts that are prone to collapse. The latest incident happened in Chegutu, some 100 km (62 miles) west of the capital Harare on Friday. Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga told the local Sunday Mail newspaper that 13 had died in the collapse at the site which had not been properly sealed off. Deputy…

Oct

2023

By The African Mirror

Six dead, 15 trapped underground in Zimbabwe mine accident, state TV reports

NEWS

SIX miners died after a ground collapse at Zimbabwe's Bay Horse mine in Chegutu, 100 kilometres (62 miles) west of the capital Harare, state television reported. ZBC TV said six bodies had been retrieved from the mine by Friday night, while another 15 miners were still trapped underground and rescue efforts were underway. The mine collapsed around 0800 GMT on Friday, trapping 34 miners underground. Although 13 miners managed to escape, 21 had remained trapped underground, ZBC reported.

Jul

2023

By NYASHA CHINGONO

Boxing legend Mayweather attends political rally in Zimbabwe

NEWS

FORMER world boxing champion Floyd Mayweather attended a political campaign event in Zimbabwe, part of the ruling party's attempts to woo youth voters ahead of a general election next month. Mayweather was welcomed with song and dance by ZANU PF party supporters in Mabvuku, one of Zimbabwe's oldest townships, on the outskirts of the capital Harare. One of President Emmerson Mnangagwa's closest allies, gold magnate Scott Sakupwanya, who is looking to reclaim a parliamentary seat from the opposition, said he had invited Mayweather. "People thought I was lying when I said I would bring Mayweather, but he is here. This…

Jul

2023

By The African Mirror

Eyeing wider trade ties, Iran’s Raisi starts Africa visit

NEWS

IRANIAN President Ebrahim Raisi received red-carpet welcomes from his counterparts in Kenya and Uganda in launching a three-country tour of Africa that Tehran has touted as a "new beginning" in relations with the continent. Raisi's trip to Africa, which will also take him to Zimbabwe, is the first by an Iranian president in more than a decade and represents a bid to diversify Iran's trade relations in the face of crippling U.S. sanctions. Iran stepped up diplomatic outreach to developing world countries after then-U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew the United States from Tehran's nuclear accord with world powers in 2018…

Jul

2023

By TAKUDZWA CHANGADEYA, BIRD STORY AGENCY

Dream or reality: Zimbabwe’s 12 billion dollar-a-year mining target

NEWS

ON July 5 2023, a Chinese mining company officially opened a lithium processing plant worth US$300 million in Zimbabwe. The Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt plant is located in Goromonzi, about 80km southeast of Harare. Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who officiated at the commissioning, told those gathered for the event that the investment would help the country's mining industry grow its value to US$12 billion by the end of 2023 and contribute to achieving the country's Vision 2030 to elevate Zimbabwe to an upper middle-income economy. "This investment will undoubtedly contribute to the mining sector targets set out in the national development…

Jul

2023

By BIRD STORY AGENCY

The rise of Nigerian rugby

SPORT

AFTER a long absence from serious regional or international rugby - dominated in Africa by South Africa, Kenya, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Uganda, Madagascar and Tunisia - Nigeria has startled stalwarts in the African rugby scene by making it into a qualifying tournament for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. A recent surge in performance indicates a promising future for the sport in Africa's most populous nation, with the Black Stallions just one tournament away from securing a spot in the 2024 Olympics. The team's talent, determination - and a new coach in Steve Lewis - were all on display at the Mauritius…

Jun

2023

By The African Mirror

Zimbabwe president pledges economic revival as election campaign kicks off

NEWS

NYASHA CHINGONO ZIMBABWEAN President Emmerson Mnangagwa vowed to do "what we can to remain in power", promising to revive an economy that has collapsed under his watch as he launched his bid for a second five-year term. Zimbabwe will hold presidential and parliamentary elections on August 23 which are expected to pit Mnangagwa, 80, of the ZANU-PF party against pastor and lawyer Nelson Chamisa, 45, of the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC). The election comes amid a raging economic crisis, with high inflation and a currency that plunged more than 50% this month against the U.S. dollar. In remarks aimed mostly at…

Jun

2023

By The African Mirror

Eleven candidates to run for president in Zimbabwe

NEWS

NYASHA CHINGONO ELEVEN candidates will run for the Zimbabwean presidency in an August election, the electoral commission has said, after several hopefuls were disqualified for failing to raise the $20,000 needed to appear on the ballot. The election is expected to pit Incumbent Emmerson Mnangagwa, of the ZANU-PF party, against pastor and lawyer Nelson Chamisa of the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC), who is seen as the strongest challenger. The commission said late on Thursday that 11 hopeful candidates had been disqualified from the Aug. 23 election, several of whom, including Linda Masarira, failed to pay the $20,000 to secure…

Jun

2023

By The African Mirror

Zimbabwe’s ‘Patriotic Bill’ outlaws criticism of government before election

NEWS

ZIMBABWE'S parliament has outlawed criticism of the government ahead of presidential and parliamentary elections in August, with violations of a new law punishable by up to 20 years in jail. The Criminal Law Code Amendment Bill, widely known as the "Patriotic Bill", contains a clause that criminalises "wilfully damaging the sovereignty and national interest of Zimbabwe". Opposition activists said the law, passed late on Wednesday, was designed to punish citizens, civil society organisations and political adversaries of the ruling ZANU-PF party. It has raised fears that the government could launch a crackdown on dissent ahead of the general election on August 23,…