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SENATE HANSARD 18 JULY 2024 VOL 33 NO 67

PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE

Thursday, 18^th July, 2024

The Senate met at Half-past Two o’clock p.m.

PRAYERS

(THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE in the Chair)

ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE

APOLOGIES RECEIVED FROM MINISTERS

          THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE: Good afternoon Hon. Ministers and Senators.  In terms of Standing Orders, today is time for questions in the Senate.  As usual, we start with questions without notice. It is also becoming a norm; I have a long list of apologies tendered by some Ministers and they are as follows;

Hon.  Sen. M. Mutsvangwa, Minister of Women’s Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development; Hon. J. Mhlanga, Deputy Minister of Women’s Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development; Hon. D. Garwe, Minister of Local Government and Public Works; Hon. K. L. Coventry, Minister of Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture; Hon. Z. Ziyambi, Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs; Hon. B. Rwodzi, Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Industry, Hon. O.C.Z. Muchinguri-Kashiri, Minister of Defence; Hon. E. Moyo, Minister of Energy and Power Development; Hon. A. Murwira, Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science and Technology Development; Hon. S.G.G. Nyoni, Minister of Environment, Climate and Wildlife; Hon. John Paradza, Deputy Minister of Environment, Climate and Wildlife; Hon. F.M. Shava, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade; Hon. S. Chikomo, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Hon. V. P. Haritatos, Deputy Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Resettlement; Hon. S. Kwidini, Deputy Minister of Health and Child Care, Hon. M. Dinha, Deputy Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare and Hon. P. Kambamura, Deputy Minister of Mines and Mining Development. 

        Present in the Chamber today are as follows; Hon. Mavima, Minister of Skills Audit and Development; Hon. Modi, Deputy Minister of Industry and Commerce, Hon. Gata, Deputy Minister of Primary and Secondary Education, Hon. Musa Ncube, Deputy Minister of National Housing and Social Amenities; Hon. Jesaya, Deputy Minister of Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture; Hon. Kabikira, Deputy Minister of Local Government and Public Works.  Hon. Ministers, you are welcome.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE

          HON. SEN. SHIRI: Thank you Mr. President. My question is directed to the Honourable Minister of Skills Audit and Development, Prof. Mavhima.  Professor, what plans do you have as a Ministry to uplift people with disabilities in their diversity so that they acquire skills that can help them to get employment?  I thank you.

          THE MINISTER OF SKILLS AUDIT AND DEVELOPMENT (HON. PROF. MAVIMA): Thank you Mr. President for that good question from Hon. Shiri. Hon. Shiri, you know always that Government is following the Constitution of this country that speaks about people’s rights, everyone’s rights and also makes reference to the rights of people living with disabilities.  It is in the Constitution and it also speaks to us as the Ministry of Skills Audit.  We have since started a programme that focuses on all Vocational Training Centres that are meant to cater for the rights of people living with disabilities.  We are going there to audit if they have all the necessary facilities in order for them to provide education and the requisite skills for people living with disabilities.  We are looking at the equipment and facilities at these institutions.  We are also looking at the teachers themselves if they are enough and if they have the requisite qualifications.  We expect this report to be out by September or latest October.  We will put our recommendations to the Ministries that they should look after, the rights of people living with disabilities.  These include the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, the Ministry of Youth Empowerment and Vocational Training and the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, who should figure out what must be done to ensure that people living with disabilities are empowered with the necessary skills for their survival.  This is the current programme that we have as a Ministry.  Firstly, we are looking at the training institutions because we know the importance of the people living with disabilities and that they are a priority.  We also know the obligations given to Government by the Constitution in order to empower people living with disabilities.

          HON. SEN GWATURE:  My supplementary question to the Minister is, what programmes do they have in place to find out where people living with disabilities are located in this country?  Whose duty is it to find where they are living and what needs they have?  I thank you.

          HON. PROF. MAVIMA: Thank you Mr. President.  I would also like to thank the Hon. Senator for the question.  If it is about skills development of people living with disabilities, it is under my Ministry, the Skills Audit and Development Ministry.  We are supposed to find out where people living with disabilities are and find out their needs for skills development.  However, as you know, the biggest mandate of ensuring the livelihoods of people with disabilities lies with the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare.  We will be working with them and we expect to get information from them to tell us where they are located and the skills that they need for their development.   We will be behind them to ensure that where there is need for their skills development, we will be able to get that information from the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare.  That is the Ministry that is central to the coordination of people living with disabilities.

          +HON. SEN. M. NDLOVU:  My question is directed to the Minister of Local Government.  Bulawayo residents, especially those residing in Cowdry Park want to know if there are any measures that have been put in place for them to get their title deeds as they do not have title deeds for the areas, they are occupying in Cowdry Park.

*THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND PUBLIC WORKS (HON. KABIKIRA): Thank you for the question Hon. Senator. That question should be addressed to the Ministry of National Housing and Social Amenities. It does not apply to the Ministry of Local Government.

+THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF NATIONAL HOUSING AND SOCIAL AMENITIES (HON. M. NCUBE): I will take the opportunity to extend my thanks to Hon. Senator Ndlovu for the question that pertains to residents in Cowdry Park. Following the passing of the Constitution in 2013, Government has seen it fit that every citizen in Zimbabwe is issued with shelter. Looking at the issue of Cowdry Park, the Ministry is currently looking at the issue of providing and issuing title deeds to the residents of Cowdry Park.

His Excellency the, President, Cde. E. D. Mnangagwa, issued title deeds to residents of Epworth suburb in Harare and in the same way, Cowdry Park is also one of the residential areas that has been earmarked for the provision and issuance of title deeds.  I can say that Cowdry Park, Caledonia and Gimboki are some of the areas that are earmarked for the provision of title deeds. As a Ministry, we are expecting that by the end of this year, we would have issued title deeds to substantial number of residents across the country.

HON. SEN. MAVENYENGWA: I want to find out from the Minister of Industry and Commerce what Government policy he has put in place for the resuscitation of industries, especially those in Bulawayo which closed due to lack of resources and what assistance the Ministry is giving to those industries so that we will be in line with Vision 2030 of resuscitating all industries. Can the Minister please inform the House what policies he has put in place and what he has done so far if there are any industries that have been resuscitated?

Before I sit down, I would also want to applaud the Ministry for the Manhize Project which I saw yesterday on television. I think our country is going to benefit a lot and get the much-needed foreign currency.

THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF INDUSTRY AND COMMERCE (HON. MODI): As a Ministry, we have a $20 million facility for retooling the industries. Those who are in need of financial assistance can come forward and we are ready to distribute that fund to them. If there is anyone with a particular industry that they have in mind, they can contact us so that we can facilitate a loan for them.

HON. SEN. KUNAKA: To the Minister of Health and in his absence, may I direct the question to the Leader of Government Business? What plans does Government have in place to curb the scourge of unsafe abortions in line with the provisions of the law?

THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR PRESIDENTIAL AFFAIRS IN THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT AND CABINET (HON. SEN. MATUKE): We have some laws that prohibit people from committing unsafe abortions. Abortion can only be authorised through a medical doctor, given the circumstances surrounding the condition of the person who wants to abort, any abortion which is done outside that is against the laws of the country. If there are such cases, they can be reported to the police. It is not allowed for somebody just to abort for no apparent reason.

HON. SEN. KADUNGURE: Minister of Transport and Infrastructure development, what steps are being taken to enforce speed limits imposed on buses and heavy trucks that are causing many accidents in the country resulting in the death of innocent citizens?

THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND INFRASCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. MHONA): Let me thank Hon. Sen. Kadungure for that very important question which is very emotional. The rate at which we are losing precious lives is quite worrisome in this country where we are witnessing on average five to six accidents every day. Given the numbers that we have as a nation, we cannot continue losing such precious lives and I am just talking of fatalities. We are also having those who are injured and they also have dependants.  I am happy Hon. Senator that you talked about the measures that we are taking as Government.  With the promulgation of Statutory Instrument 18:2023, which became effective on 1^st January, 2024, we were managing those in the Public Service vehicles business to have gadgets to monitor speed.  This is what we are doing as a Ministry, where we are mandating the trucks and buses so that they have these gadgets in place.

          We have seen that regardless of what we are doing, as a mitigatory measure, we still find those errand drivers, those problematic drivers who practice indiscipline when it comes to driving.  I have always said to the people of Zimbabwe, the moment you are on the road, it does not matter whether you are right or wrong, you must know that you are not driving your own vehicle and the sanctity of life is no longer being respected where we are witnessing that drivers are driving under the influence of substances and drugs.  At times they are on their mobile phones.  So, we are not ending there. 

Through Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe, we are raising the awareness so that we continue educating people, but we cannot do it alone as a Ministry, which I therefore, call for people of Zimbabwe so that we must take charge of our safety on our roads and we continue with enforcement, through VID.   I also engaged my counterpart where we are working closely with the Minister of Home Affairs so that we have joint operations, the police and VID.  Above all, to also allay fears of the august House that we have seen that the burden is on the fiscus and we cannot continue, we are in the process of coming up with a Road Accident Fund, where now we have tabled it before Cabinet and it is within the Cabinet Committee to go through the principles so that the burden is not on the State where we have seen that those that were injured, at times their dependence will suffer.  Those with fatalities might be bread-winners, the families are also suffering.  So, precisely we are working on that modality so that we can also have a Road Accident Fund in place.  

          My humble plea is that as we then move towards August, Heroes, I appeal to the people of Zimbabwe to say, we are losing precious lives on our roads and we cannot continue.  I therefore, humbly request that as we drive, let us exercise due caution and know that once we lose life, we will not get it back.  I thank you.

          +HON. SEN. NDEBELE: Thank you Mr. President Sir.  My question is directed to the Minister of Transport. As Zimbabwe, we expect an influx of visitors, particularly tourists to view our endowed resources.  We also expect that they will be interested in visiting places outside urban centres.  They may also be interested in visiting our traditional centres to see how people used to live culturally.  The road to Victoria Falls from Harare via Lupane is 870 km.   Harare-Kwekwe-Lupane, it is 685 km.  Harare-Bulawayo to Victoria Falls, it is 877 km, that is 192 km difference.  What can be done Hon. Minister, to ensure that we have easy passage on roads that lead to such areas that will be of tourists’ attraction, including resort areas like Binga, Hwange and Victoria Falls?   What are the plans in terms of ensuring that these roads are repaired and made easy and accessible?

          THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. MHONA): Thank you Hon. Senator for that very important question, which is touching basically on our tourist centres.  I think it is very important because in terms of growth as a country, we also rely on tourism.  I am happy to unpack what we are doing in terms of strategy and in terms of implementation matrix regarding visiting and trafficability to such very important tourist centres. 

          She is very right in terms of connecting Victoria Falls.  If you use Kwekwe, it is much faster and it is shorter.  We are having that road from Kwekwe-Lupane-Nkayi, Nkayi- Lupane, where we are partnering with a private player and we are seized now with trying to finalise the agreement and the private player is going to be working on the entire stretch.  Not only that, even the Victoria Falls Road, we are taking it from Beitbridge via Bulawayo, then Bulawayo-Victoria Falls, which covers approximately 760 km from that end of Beitbridge. 

          I am happy again to say to the august House, we now have a partner, where we are just finalising on the funding modalities but we have agreed in principle, after we have flighted a tender for that particular stretch.  I am happy that the contractor is going to be working on that particular stretch and I can say to the august House, the contractor is there already.  You have seen them working on some of the sections of our roads, like the one that we are looking at now from this very magnificent building, which is the boulevard.  We are saying that same contractor would take the road from Beitbridge and have been working on some of the sections on our Harare-Beitbridge Road.  We are going to be rehabilitating/reconstructing. 

As we know that the Victoria Falls Road was constructed during 1960/1961 and it is old and tired, it is weaker, we cannot continue attending to the potholes where we now need to reconstruct the entire road.  We are going to do precisely what we are doing on the Harare-Beitbridge, where you will see us reconstructing the entire road and widening the road at 12.5 metres from the current 7 metres that it is.  This will allow easy trafficability of our tourists to Victoria Falls.  Also, the ease of doing business; this is why we are there as a Ministry to promote ease of doing business.  We are saying to the nation and to the people of Matebeleland in particular, you are not going to be left behind.  I have been hearing that we are not looking at that particular road, but we can say it is at the centre of the Ministry.  It is on the priority list of the Ministry, where Victoria Falls as you know that soon after the SADC event, where we are now seized on a number of major roads here, we are going to be descending on very two major roads.  I will be in a position to give details very soon.

          I can just highlight that we will also have another major road, which is Bulawayo-Nkayi, where we are going to be doing the entire stretch.  Yes, we had earmarked five km this year, but we are going to be doing the entire stretch, working closely again with the private sector.  So, we have got a number of roads that we are working on, taking cognisant of the fact that for anyone to do business, you need a good road.  For you to visit, whether it is socially or it is for tourist purposes, you also need a good road.  I thank you.

          HON. SEN. CHIEF MATHUPULA:  Thank you very much Mr. President and to the Minister of Roads for a well answered question.  He spoke about Matebeleland in particular and I was waiting to hear if there are any plans for the road to Tsholotsho which connects Bulawayo with Hwange National Park on the Tsholotsho side, which is also a tourist destination.  Any plans, public partnerships for the fixing of the road to Tsholotsho?

          HON. MHONA:  Thank you Mr. President Sir.  Culturally, when the Chief has spoken, you just need to do precisely what the Chief has directed.  I want to assure the Hon. Sen. Chief Matupula that the road is very important.  .  If you remember last year, we touched on a 5km; Bulawayo-Tsholotsho, Bulawayo-Kezi, Maphisa but it is not enough. 

The fact that roads were neglected for years, even if you do 5km, it might not do well but we know that a journey of a thousand miles begins with a step and we just need to do that.  I am grateful that under the 2^nd Republic being championed by His Excellency, Cde Dr. E. D. Mnangagwa, we started doing our roads and I want to assure the Hon. Senator Chief Mathupula that, yes, Bulawayo-Tsholotsho, Bulawayo-Nkezi, Maphisa, Gwanda, we have those but like I said I will bring a detailed report of what we are doing in terms of managing roads.

I just cited those two Nkayi and Victoria Falls since they have been in the public domain for some time.  I understand some of these roads lead to some of our great leaders where they were coming from their rural areas.  We also need to respect that they contributed significantly and I am sure Mr. President, you were together in the army, in the liberation struggle with some of these stalwarts that we also need to make sure we respect them even if they are gone, may their souls rest in peace. We are descending on a number of roads, not necessarily looking at a region, but we will cover the entire nation equitably as we get our resources.  Thank you.

*HON. SEN. MUPFUMIRA: My question is directed to the Minister of Transport and we really thank him for the sterling job that is taking place on our roads, especially in the capital city, Harare. I suppose these programmes had timelines that were set, like Harare – Chirundu, Copa Queen – Sanyati, especially to Kanyaga that you know are my concern. Are they not going to be affected by these projects that are taking place here? If you travel going to what we used to call, Great North, as soon as you leave Harare, there was a ground breaking ceremony and we celebrated the Harare – Chirundu Road. However, if you travel on that road right now, it is now down. Is it being affected by the budget, but the budget is different?

Looking at the tourism aspect, Karoi- Binga Road which takes us to Victoria Falls for us from Mashonaland West, what is the progress now although we do appreciate what you are doing? Some of the people that we represent are not aware of all this progress and developments and continue asking us, especially the Kanyaga Road where we continuously find ourselves at loggerheads with the people. What is the budget and what are the timelines, as well as the Karoi Binga Road? Where is it right now? We really appreciate you and what you are doing, especially attending the House explaining and responding to questions. If there was an award, I would hand it to you for that. I thank you.

THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Perhaps, what you need to do is to come with your schedule of what you want to do because obviously, you cannot do everything at once and you need to prioritise your infrastructure development, but I will not talk on your behalf.

THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. MHONA): It is true that and like you indicated, I will come to this House with detailed list of roads, but I will say I am free to respond to questions for those who want to find the progress. With the years that I spent in the Ministry, I now appreciate some of the roads where the Hon. Members come from. Hon. Senator Mupfumira is referring to Alaska Copa Queen Road. I know that road is very central to her constituency. Unfortunately, we are unable to get loans like other countries because of the sanctions.

Indeed, if we were another country, we would be really struggling on our knees right now, but I appreciate your contributions, especially the ones that you make by paying your dues through the tollgates. So, the Harare- Chirundu Road, if you consider, it starts at the Harare Post Office and we have since started this road. As you can see, this is the road that you use up to Westgate. We are going to develop this road into four lanes up to Inkomo and we will proceed further. As you know, according to our culture, we are trying very hard at the moment to clean up our house to cater for the visitors who will be coming in the next three or so weeks. After the visitors have gone, we will proceed with our business as usual and we will look into other projects.

Right now, as you can see, we have since opened some of the roads or lanes that we had closed but in the next fourteen days I can assure you that we will open a lot of roads leading to the Parliament. We had paused some of the projects whilst we concentrated on these major ones but after this event, I can assure you that we will proceed. As you are aware, according to the mantra of the President, Cde. E. D. Mnangagwa the country is built by its owners. I thank you.

THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Can we make our questions direct and to the point so that as many of us can table questions.

          HON. SEN. ZINDI:  My question is directed to the Deputy Minister of Industry and Commerce.  May the Deputy Minister explain the flip flopping on the policy regarding importation of second hand vehicles?  I think it is just yesterday or two days ago, I read in the media that the ban on 10-year old second hand vehicles had been lifted.  Furthermore, is the Minister, in his opinion, not seeing that this policy somehow is discriminatory in as far as Zimbabweans are concerned.  The policy is only applicable to civil servants.  Even though I am not against the idea that civil servants should actually benefit on that policy to import second hand vehicles.  Why would it not be extended to all Zimbabweans, particularly when I see that civil servants are already gainfully employed and the rest of Zimbabweans are unemployed, but can afford to import, they should also be accorded that status.

          THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF INDUSTRY AND COMMERCE (HON. MODI): Thank you Hon. President Sir.  The policy just came out recently.  I agree with you but I do not have much information regarding why it is only for the civil servants.  If you can put the question in writing, I will give you comprehensive answer.

          THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE:  Hon. Senator Zindi, can you put your question in writing so that you can get a response.

          HON. SEN. MUZODA:  Thank you Mr. President.  My question is directed to the leader of the House.  The Auditor General’s Report, 2023 has exposed a lot of corruption and financial mismanagement where at times goods procured are not delivered.  What measures are being taken by the Government to address the financial mismanagement and corruption exposed in the Report?  Thank you. 

          THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR PRESIDENTIAL AFFAIRS IN THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT AND CABINET (HON. SEN. MATUKE): Mr. President, I want to thank the Hon. Member for a very important question and that Government deals with these issues case by case.  I am sure Government is going to take action against those corrupt tendencies.  The approach is case by case not collectively.  There are different individuals who committed those crimes.  Finally, I am sure they are going to implement and make sure that they are taken to book. 

          HON. SEN. CHIEF CHIKWAKA:  Thank you Mr. President, may you please allow me to pose my question to the Leader of Government Business.  We have war veterans who fought in the liberation struggle and buried in various areas in provinces and districts.  We continuously request for the sprucing of those areas so that they are not like people who are neglected.  We are not getting any response, what is Government saying about their children?  What is Government doing to the combatants and their children, some of them are dying?  They also need compensation and to be looked after. I thank you.   

          THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR PRESIDENTIAL AFFAIRS IN THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT AND CABINET (HON. SEN. MATUKE): I would like to thank the Hon. Sen. Chief, it is a very important question.  We should show respect to the people who fought and died for this country.  The Government, through our President Mnangagwa, set up a Ministry responsible for war veterans led by a War Veteran.  The aim is to ensure that some of those issues like the ones you are referring to may be prioritised so that they may ensure that all those areas are looked after.  If you look at what was happening, the President started with earlier battles such as Phuphu where he visited and showed the appreciation of people who fought in that war and ensure that they are given the necessary appreciation.  If you also look at Kangoma, Gutu, Masvingo, the President also went to that area and paid homage to those people who lost their lives as they fought in the liberation struggle. 

          Mr. President, that is a symbol that Government prioritises people who did such a wonderful job.  In Mount Darwin, the President, two years ago at Independence also did that.  Now coming back to the issue of non-combatants who are supposed to get gratuities, they are now all dying but there is a programme that was done for the Mujibas and Chimbwidos.  It was a vetting programme so that we have a register to enable Government to sit down and come up with a package for gratuity but you realise that as we go to the Heroes day this year in August, most of them that were vetted and certified that they were indeed war collaborators and detainees or restrictees,  all the Ministers of State in the ten provinces will be issuing out certificates of appreciation for the role played by the war collaborators as well as other comrades who were not rewarded when the process was done.  The President assigned people to ensure that the job is completed.  This year we expect that indeed we will have a very huge figure and from next year, we expect the war collaborators to also be awarded medals, especially the war collaborators. After that, since we now have the register of all of them, Government will then come up with a package to assist them, taking into cognisance availability of resources.  I thank you.

Questions Without Notice were interrupted by THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE in terms of Standing Order No 67.

HON. SEN. MAKAMBA:  I propose that the time for Questions without Notice be extended by 20 minutes.

HON. SEN. FANUEL:  I second.

Motion put and agreed to.

THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE:  Hon. Kazembe, did you want to ask a question?

THE MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS AND CULTURAL HERITAGE (HON. KAZEMBE): No Mr. President.  I was enjoying the responses by the Leader of Government Business which were well laid out.  But to add on to the response, I would like to say that this issue affects a lot of us, including some of us who did not go to the liberation struggle.  Yes indeed, there are some who are still buried out there in the bushes and it is as if we have forgotten that there are people who sacrificed their lives.  But we really appreciate the work that is being done and that is why the President is going to the various monuments.  As the Ministry of Home Affairs, Monuments and Museums, we have been tasked to look after such areas as Chimoyo, Zambia and Angola.  There are a lot of areas where the freedom fighters are buried.  We have since sent our technical teams to consider what work is supposed to be done and Treasury has promised funding to work on those areas.  So, it is work in progress but at an advanced stage.

*HON. SEN. CHIEF CHIKWAKA:  It is very good indeed that we are able to help each other.  I really appreciate the response given by the two Ministers but if you heard what I said, sometimes it is as if the impact of the efforts may not be seen.  I agree that in the districts, there are such areas that are known to have freedom fighters buried there.  So, what I am saying is that they are in a sorry state but if you go to the National Heroes Acre, everyone can see that there are heroes buried there.  If you go to districts and other areas, they are in a sorry state yet they did a great job.  I thank you.

*HON. KAZEMBE: Let me thank the chief for his question.  I might have omitted other areas by mentioning areas that are only out of Zimbabwe.  I have also visited the local shrines and they are not in a good state.  The challenges that we have is with funding.  We draw water from the same communal well.  It is not as if we do not respect our liberators but it is all about funding.  I heard the Minister of Transport saying he is just trying to clean up the roads and once it is done and the visitors are gone, then he will take it slow. We are in the same boat and we are in the same queue.  Now, we are also thinking outside the box on how best we can get funding to spruce up such shrines in the districts and provincial heroes’ acres.  We know what is supposed to be done.  The manpower to do it is there but the challenge is funding.  We are now trying to look for another source of funding to carry out that mandate.   I thank you.

*HON. SEN. ZVIDZAI:  My question is directed to the Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science and Technology Development.  He talked about skilled manpower in the Ministry of Health.  What plans does the Minister have to ensure that we have technology in the health sector?  I thank you.

          * THE MINISTER OF HIGHER AND TERTIARY EDUCATION, INNOVATION, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT (HON. PROF. MAVIMA): Thank you President of the Senate and Hon. Senator Zvidzai for the question. As he has mentioned, it is true that skilled people are few in the Ministry of Health and skilled manpower is few in regards to the doctor-nurse-patient ratios and other various skills or skilled personnel within the same Ministry. I would also want to bring the attention of this august House, that this is not the only area that does not have skilled manpower. In 2018, we did a critical skills audit and it showed us that even in agriculture, there were less skilled manpower which was at about 90%. We also looked at the area of engineering and other areas and we found out that there was also manpower shortage.

          After we had been given work to look into the issue of manpower in this country, we went back to find out what position we were now in and if there have been any changes since 2018. We are now through with the initial process of the consultations. So, what is required at the moment is to come up with documents and recommendations on what each department and sections can be done in order to improve skills in the relevant areas and what type of people should we be training and what should our training schools be doing. Are they able to quickly train such personnel? Do they have all the required facilities, equipment and the teachers so that we make such recommendations? What also is required is that as Zimbabwe, we should know that for us to retain this skilled manpower, especially those that are in the health sector, the majority of them have left the country, if you go to England, Australia and New Zealand, you will find a lot of Zimbabwean nurses and doctors who were trained in Zimbabwe.

          As a country, we need to put our hands together, unite and see how best we can further develop our economy. We must also focus on the President’s NDS1 and NDS2 as we gravitate towards Vision 2030 and leave unnecessary arguments and build the economy. Once the economy has been developed even our children who have left this country will come back and give expert service to their country. Those that are trained will remain in here and we will build a reservoir of required skills and capacities for the further development of our country. We are doing recommendations that are sector specific in order to develop such skills but at the same time, we should know that they can only be living in this country if our economy is built. Let us build our economy as our President has always said. I thank you.

          HON. SEN. CHAKABUDA: My question is directed to the Minister of Energy and Power Development. What is the electricity situation in our country as we are seeing a lot of power outages?

          THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF ENERGY AND POWER DEVELOPMENT (HON. SIMBANEGAVI): I can start by saying our electricity situation right now is very normal under the circumstance that we are operating in. As you know Hon. Senator, this year we have an El Nino and this has greatly affected the water levels at Kariba Dam, which is affecting our generating capacity in terms of hydro-electricity. It is also winter and therefore many people are using a lot of electricity in domestic set ups. This is also giving rise to fluctuations in electricity consumption because the usage of electricity in winter is very high.

          We are in the season of winter cropping. The capacity of generation that we were giving to our farmers has increased this year. In the previous seasons, we used to supply around 120MW, but this year it has increased to 260MW. This has also now reduced the amount of electricity that is going to domestic set ups. We have to appreciate that in the New Dispensation, our economy has improved so much that our industry sector has also grown. The burden on the supply of electricity has grown.

What we have done as the Ministry is that we are looking to other ways of improving the electricity that we are generating as a nation. We have now come up with a policy of incentivising independent power producers to supplement the amount of electricity that we are generating. We are now encouraging and licencing independent power producers who can now setup solar power plants on their own, which they can then put into the national grid to increase our electricity supply.

We are also encouraging the industrial sector to come up with their own mini grids that they can use for themselves at their own factories. We are even encouraging domestic users to use green energy that is to put up solar systems at their own homes. We have improved the awareness on the use of liquid petroleum gas in industries and domestic system where we are now saying whereas a person can be using electricity for lighting, they can use gas stoves to cook in order to reduce the burden of electricity on the national grid. I thank you.

          HON. SEN. GOTORA: We would like to hear what the Minster is saying about alternative means of energy. May the Minster please tell the House what they are doing about harnessing wind power because we know that there are a lot of high-speed winds in the country, higher than what is in United Kingdom, but the United Kingdom is already using wind power?  What is the Ministry doing about wind power? I thank you.

          HON. SIMBANEGAVI: Thank you Mr. President. What we have done as Government is, we have now embarked on massive research in terms of the alternative energy sources as you have said, and wind energy is one of those that we are looking into. We are actually expecting to be attending a seminar where the use of wind and generation of energy using wind is going to be topical. However, I want to be very honest with you and say that most of this is still under research. We are looking into affordable systems of how we can harness this wind so that if our people are going to be using these, especially at their own farms or the factories, these are going to be very cost effective.  When they invest in these systems, it is not going o be burdensome on their level of investment. It is still very much under research.  As you have said, it is also something that we have taken note of to make sure that the abundant source of wind that we have is something that we can harness to make sure that we improve our energy supply. Thank you.

          HON. SEN. MLILO: Thank you Mr. President. My question is directed to the Minister of Health but in his absence, I will direct it to the Leader of the House. Who is in charge of the medical aid society in Zimbabwe because we are facing so many questions in our areas? When you consult doctors, the doctors say that you should pay cash upfront before you can go to the medical aid society, so that they give you your funds back. This is a very difficult situation for the patients. What is the reason for this to the Minister?

          MINISTER OF STATE FOR PRESIDENTIAL AFFAIRS IN THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT AND CABINET (HON. SEN. MATUKE): First and foremost, I would want the Hon. Member to know that we have several Medical Aid Societies. The medical aid society that we can talk about which is associated with Government workers is PSMAS. We contribute towards that society.  Previously, bank charges were going up, we expect that things are going to become more stable because of the present currency that we now have, unlike in the past, when we had an unstable currency that tended to fluctuate daily. So the manner in which these various medial aids were operating in was difficult to an extent that they were no longer accepting the ZWL currency. The ZWL had its challenges in that the exchange rate was constantly moving up due to inflation.

However, since the advent of the ZiG, in April to date, our currency has shown that it is strong.  Therefore, it will assist us in stabilising our economy.  This will be the panacea to the challenges that were being experienced by medical aid societies and their beneficiaries. Exchange volatility for the local currency will now be a thing of the past, such that gone are the days when a beneficiary contributes money towards medical aid and three months down the line the society is unable to provide the service that the beneficiary has paid for.

Even our supermarkets had similar challenges due to inflation in terms of prices.  Prices were being changed will-nilly, which led to the people complaining.  During this period of exchange volatility, people were reluctant to accept our currency.  As a result, medical aid societies and their beneficiaries suffered as their contributions were constantly being eroded by inflation.  This is a pertinent question.  It is being looked into. I thank you.

Questions Without Notice were interrupted by THE DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE, in terms of Standing Order Number 67.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS WITH NOTICE

ISSUANCE OF PRIMARY DOCUMENTS TO ORPHANS AND DEPENDANTS OF GUKURAHUNDI

VICTIMS

1. HON SEN. RITTA NDLOVU asked the Minister of Home

 Affairs and Cultural Heritage to inform the Senate what progress the Ministry has made in terms of the issuance of primary documents to orphans and dependants of victims who lost their parents during the Gukurahundi era.

          THE MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS AND CULTURAL HERITAGE (HON. KAZEMBE): Thank you Mr. President Sir.  I would like to thank the Hon. Senator for such a pertinent question.  His Excellency the President, Hon. Dr. Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa initiated the Gukurahundi engagement and chiefs were asked to carry out consultations, within their areas of jurisdiction to get information on those requiring primary documents.  In fact, I attended that meeting, it was in agreement between the chiefs and His Excellency the President that the chiefs should spearhead this process as they are the ones who know their areas and their people.  They are the rightful people to spearhead or to lead in this exercise.

          This exercise was yet to commence pending the official launch which was done over the weekend.  However, the Ministry, through the Department of Civil Registry, carried out a nationwide mobile registration exercise which resulted in more than 3 million people receiving identification documents of one form or the other.  His Excellency the President, Hon. Dr. E. D. Mnangagwa, even directed the Department of Civil Registry not to ask too many questions and even waived the fees to ensure that no one and no place was left behind.

          Over and above that, it may also be worthwhile to inform the Hon. Sen. that my Ministry through the Civil Registry Department, is currently working towards capacitating traditional leaders in the implementation of active notification for community births and deaths.  Currently, this programme is being piloted in Manicaland and Matabeleland North Provinces.  A total of 5 970 village heads have been trained.  The programme will be rolled out to the remaining provinces very soon. 

ESTABLISHMENT OF A POLICE STATION AT CHIKANGA PHASE 1 SUBURB

2. HON. SEN. ZINDI asked the Minister of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage to inform the Senate, whether the Ministry will consider establishing a police station in Chikanga Phase 1 suburb to curb the drug and substance abuse and other rampant criminal activities?

THE MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS AND CULTURAL HERITGE (HON. KAZEMBE):  Thank you Mr. President Sir.  Allow me to also thank Hon. Sen. Zindi for that very important question.  

Mr. President Sir, as I already alluded to, I would like to thank the Hon. Senator.  My Ministry wishes to inform the Senate that Chikanga Phase 1 is policed by Chikanga Police Station.  Currently, all police deployments to Chikanga Phase 1 are being done from ZRP Chikanga.  As a Ministry, we are equally concerned about increased drug and substance abuse, not only in Chikanga Phase 1 but in the other areas across the entire country.

This is the reason why the Police is undertaking ongoing operations to bust drug peddling and syndicates, suffice to say efforts through increased foot and motorised patrols are being made to prevent crime in general. 

In Chikanga Phase 1’s target, the reins are being conducted to turn

drug and substance abuse.  More-so, crime awareness campaigns are being held consistently to conscientise the public on the dangers of drug and substance abuse.  Given the extensive developments in terms of human settlement that we are witnessing within the jurisdiction of ZRP Chikanga, it is not far-fetched that in the near future, considerations will be made to establish police posts in places such as this one when resources permitting, where it will be difficult to base self-residence from the main police station.  I so submit. 

MEASURES TO BENCHMARK THE SUCCESS OF COUNCILS AND OTHER LOCAL AUTHORITIES

3. HON. SEN. MLOTSHWA asked the Minister of Local

Government and Public Works to inform the Senate;

    a) The measures that the Ministry has put in place to benchmark the success of councils and other local authorities; and

    b) To explain to the House who the competent authority to monitor and evaluate the devolution of councils is.

          THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT

AND PUBLIC WORKS (HON. KABIKIRA):  Thank you so much

Mr. President Sir.  I would like to thank Hon. Sen. Mlotshwa for asking

this very important question.

          In pursuant of the call to action, no compromise to service delivery,

the blueprint by His Excellency, the President of the Republic of

Zimbabwe, Dr. E. D. Mnangagwa, on the 1^st of November 2023, the

Ministry is seized with the implementation of the blueprint.  As you are

all aware, the document is a clarion call of all local authorities to

provide the requisite services to their respective communities efficiently.

          Section E of the blueprint focuses on the establishment of minimum service delivery levels.  It is further clarified that Government is working with Urban Councils Association of Zimbabwe as well as Association of Rural District Councils of Zimbabwe in developing minimum service delivery standard to be achieved by all local authorities.  Each local authority is expected to operate within the provisions of the law and to the minimum service delivery standards.

Mr. President Sir, furthermore, an expectorate department will be

established in the Ministry with a view of ensuring that local authorities comply with the set standards.  To this end, the Ministry is in the final stages of producing the minimum service delivery standards for local authorities.  Service standards have been developed for the following areas;

•     we have water supply standards,
•     waste water management standard,
•     solid waste management,
•     roads and public safety,
•     corporate governance, and
•     environment and safety management.

      Madam President, let me highlight to you that in our Ministry, we have a department of Local Authorities that oversees the operations of both rural and urban local authorities. It has the mandate to monitor, evaluate and supervise the operations of all 92 local authorities. I submit.

COMPENSATION OF ZIMBABWE HOMELESS PEOPLE’S FEDERATION IN DANGAMVURA

5. HON. SEN ZINDI asked the Minister of Local Government and Public Works to inform the Senate when the Ministry will consider availing land to compensate the Zimbabwe Homeless People’s Federation in Dangamvura whose bona fide owners lost their land 14 years ago and have been settled illegally in Mahalape for the past eight years.

THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT

AND PUBLIC WORKS (HON. KABIKIRA):  I would want to thank Hon. Sen. Zindi for that important question. Allow me to start by giving just a short brief. Around 2012, the City of Mutare allocated land to the Homeless Federation, an organisation that aimed at providing affordable housing to the less privileged members of the society. The organisation was expected to prepare a lay-out plan, survey as well as to service the stands in line with the council’s standards and then allocate the stands to its members. A committee was appointed to manage the affairs of the project.

          Madam President, the organisation managed to prepare the lay-out, surveyed all the stands as per the lay-out plan and went on to service Phase One of the scheme with 147 residential stands, which include the water reticulation which was at 100%. Sewer reticulation was also at 100%, with the roads at 40% and the public lighting at 0%. The council then issued a partial compliance certificate which allowed the beneficiaries to take occupation of these stands in Phase One. The organisation elected a new committee to service Phase Two and Phase Three with around 750 residential stands.

This did not go down well with the old committee which then created a splinter group. These two groups separated on political affiliations. The old committee splinter group then mobilised new members and allocated unserviced stands in Phase Two and Phase Three. These individuals then took occupation of the stands illegally and the council had to intervene to evict these illegal settlers and a High Court Order was granted on the same issue. Council then engaged the Messenger of Court to execute the order and the quotation for the work was pegged at around $300 000. The council then could not fund this from its coffers and the order was not executed.

Around 2017, the old members who had left without stands then decided to illegally occupy unserviced land close to Chikanga Township in demonstration to council’s failure to evict the settlers in Federation. This land is partly owned by council, which is the industrial site and also by the National Railways of Zimbabwe as it is designated as railway servitude.  Initially these were only members but unfortunately, other desperate home seekers have also taken occupation of this land. It is estimated that there are now over 1 000 settlers on this land.   Council also approached the High Court seeking an Eviction Order and this was granted.  Council failed to execute this Order because of political pressures. 

On way forward, as Central Government, we are working on availing land with an approximate size of 100 hectares to the City of Mutare so that the settlers in Chikanga (Mahalape) can be settled and remove them for the railway servitude.

HON. SEN. ZINDI:  Thank you Madam President, it will be prudent for the Minister to at least give a timeline because the Mahalape illegal settlers have been on this land for more than eight years.  I thank you.

*HON. KABIKIRA: It is my request that I defer and confirm with the superiors who are responsible for land and I do not know when the answer might be available. 

THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF SENATE: May we revert to question number 4.

DISCIPLINARY PROCESSES BY POLITICAL PARTIES AGAINST GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES

4. HON SEN. ZVIDZAI asked the Minister of Local Government and Public Works to inform the Senate what Government’s policy is regarding political parties that conduct disciplinary processes against Government employees leading them to commit suicide given the fact that the Ministry will institute an investigation into their cases e.g. Chibhi in Bikita.

HON. DEPUTY MINISTER OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND PUBLIC WORKS (HON. KABIKIRA):  Thank you Madam President. I want to thank the Hon. Senator for a very important question. First and foremost, I wish to advise the House that political parties have no mandate to conduct disciplinary processes against Government employees.  The Minister of Local Government and Public Works is mandated by law, the Rural District Councils Act [Chapter 29:13], to institute investigations.  When the Minster suspect any violation of law and makes recommendations to Council to take disciplinary measures against Council employees as provided by the Section 154 (1) as read with Section 157, as amended in the Rural District Councils Act [Chapter 29:13), the Minister institutes an investigation and makes recommendations to Council.

REHABILITATION OF FAIRFIELDS AND MANDAMABWE-SHURUGWI ROADS

6. HON. SEN. ZVIDZAI asked the Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Development to state the plans being put in place to rehabilitate roads in the Fairfields area just after Mvuma, which continues to experience road accidents; and the Mandamabwe to Shurugwi Road.

          THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. MHONA):  Madam President, let me thank Hon. Senator Zvidzai for that very important question which is in two parts.  The first one is talking about Fairfields area just after Mvuma, which continues to experience accidents.  I wish to thank the Hon. Senator for this question.  The specific section of the Fairfields area of the Harare-Masvingo Road was intentionally left out.  The omission of the 1.2 kilometer of road is meant to accommodate the upgrading of the rail or road junction into a grade separated structure. 

          The 1.2 kilometer will accommodate a road over rail where the road will rise onto a bridge as it crosses over the railway line.  The upgrade is being done in anticipation of a revitalised railway sector which will result in more frequent train movement, hence potentially more train or vehicle conflict.

          As we speak, the designs for the road-over-rail are at very advanced stage and the construction of the road-over-rail is expected to be complete by the end of this year. 

          Hon. Madam President, on the second part of the question, the Government of Zimbabwe through Cabinet approved a partnership that resulted in the upgrading of the Shurugwi-Mandamabwe Road.  The approval was granted on the 11^th April, 2023.  The scope for the national project is reconstruction of 43 kilometers. The ground breaking ceremony was done on the 15^th January, 2024. 

          To date, 10 kilometers of surface road have been completed and opened to traffic out of the entire 43 kilometers.  I also want to add that at the end of this month, we will be opening an additional 10 kilometers again of this stretch.  The contractor is currently working on the next ten kilometers which will be completed by end of this month where seven kilometers have been primed already as we speak and the other three kilometers have been worked to base.  I am sure by the end of the month we will be opening that section.  I thank you. 

  Questions With Notice were interrupted by THE HON. PRESIDENT OF SENATE in terms of Standing Order No. 67.

MOTION

BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE

          HON. SEN. NCUBE:  Madam President, I move that Order of the Day Number 1 be stood over until the rest of the Orders of the Day have been disposed of.

          HON. SEN. GOTORA: I second.

          Motion put and agreed to.

MOTION

REPORT OF THE ZIMBABWE WOMEN PARLIAMENTARY CAUCUS (ZWPC) ON THE 68^TH SESSION OF THE COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN (CSW68)

HON. MBOHWA:  I move the motion standing in my name that this House considers and adopts the Report of the Zimbabwe Women Parliamentary Caucus (ZWPC) on the 68^th Session of the Commission on the Status of women (CSW68).

          HON. D. M. NCUBE:  I second. 

 HON. SEN. MBOHWA:  Thank you for the opportunity to give a report on the 68^th Session of the Commission on the Status of the Women that is (csw68).

• Madam President the Republic of Zimbabwe participated in the Sixty-Eighth Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW 68) from the 11^th - 22^nd of March 2024, in New York City, United States of America. This is an annual inter-governmental meeting whereby all UN Members meet to deliberate and reflect on women and girls’ issues as would have been agreed in the previous meetings based on the agreed conclusions.
• This year’s priority theme was titled, “Accelerating the Achievement of Gender Equality and the Empowerment of all Women and Girls by Addressing Poverty and Strengthening Institutions and Financing with a Gender Perspective”. The review theme was entitled, “Social Protection Systems, Access to Public Service and Sustainable Infrastructure for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women and Girls” (from the agreed conclusions of the 63^rd) The main emerging issue was “Artificial Intelligence to Advance Gender Equality: Challenges and Opportunities”.
• This report summaries the key events of the CSW and proffers some recommendations that Parliament must consider implementing through the Portfolio Committees of Women Affairs, Community and Small and Medium Enterprise Development, the Thematic Committee on Gender and Development and the Zimbabwe Women Parliamentary Caucus (ZWPC)

2.1 The Parliament of Zimbabwe delegation was headed by the President of the Senate  and patron of the Zimbabwe Women Parliamentary Caucus (ZWPC), Hon. Mabel Chinomona, who was accompanied by the following Members of Parliament and Staff: Hon. Maybe Mbowa, Chairperson of the ZWPC, Hon. Getrude Mutandi, Chairperson of the Women’s Affairs  Committee, Hon. Sisasenkosi Ndebele, Chairperson of the Thematic Committee on Gender and Development, Aide to the President of the Senate, Mr. Chifamba, Aide to the President of Senate, Mr. Kumbirai Makamure, Protocol Officer and Mrs. Precious Mtetwa, ZWPC Desk Officer and Secretary to the delegation.

3. Meetings Attended and Challenges Encountered by the Delegation:
   • During the two week event, hundreds of side events occurred on the margins of the CSW main event. However, due to the late issuance of the travel Visas by the American Embassy to the Zimbabwe Delegation, it is important to note that the delegation missed the official opening of the CSW and other key events for Parliamentarians that the Inter- Parliamentary Union and UN Women hosted among others.
   • These meetings would have benefited the delegation as they were a platform for sharing experiences on women’s political participation.

         Zimbabwe Side Events

4.1During CSW 68, Zimbabwe hosted 2 side events as follows:

4.1.1 The first side event hosted by Zimbabwe was on the Priority Theme, “Breaking Barriers and Bridging Gaps: Advancing Gender Equality through Financial Inclusion of Women and Girls,” (held on  14^th of March 2024.) The side event showcases Zimbabwe’s good practices in promoting women and girls’ financial inclusion initiatives and their impact in empowering women and girls.

4.1.2 The second side event was on the Review Theme, “ Safe Spaces Catalysing Women and Girls: Social and Economic Security, a case of collaboration between Government , Civil Society Organisations and Development Partners in Zimbabwe, which was held on the 18^th of March 2024.  The event showcased the work being done by the First Lady of the Republic of Zimbabwe, Dr Auxilia Mnangagwa in creating safe spaces for women and girls in Zimbabwe while at the same time addressing their unique needs and promoting their social and economic security.

5. Key Insights from CSW68 Side Events.

5.1 The delegation attended several side events, which included among others, discussions on the following topics.

Socio- Economic Empowerment Policies for HIV Prevention and Young Women. Promoting women’s Political participation in Equitable and Strong Public Institutions.  Gender Responsive Agriculture and Climate Change.  Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Gender - The Digital Age.  Harnessing Education for Women and Girls in Africa. Financial inclusion through digitalisation.  Addressing poverty through Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) financing. Financing and Accountability for Gender Equality and Women Empowerment.

6. Lessons learnt from these side events were that:

6.1Women continue to face barriers when it comes to accessing finances hence the need to deliberately provide funding and support women’s businesses through enhancing access to finance.  Lessons can be drawn from Kenya which has done well in transforming the lives of countless women who are in the SME sector, leaders, entrepreneurs and many others through digital financial inclusion.  Kenya’s model of utilising the digital space has gone a long way in reaching out to women at the grass roots where the internet is not accessible through the Women Enterprise Fund (WEF) and Hustler Fund which can be accessed without internet connectivity and no one visiting an office.

6.2 The creation of safe spaces for women and girls remains if Member countries are to curb Sexual and Gender - Based Violence (SGBV). Governments must prioritise enacting laws aimed at creating safe spaces for women and girls including strengthening laws on Sexual Harassment and the ‘HeForShe” Campaign.

6.3 Some member countries have increased resources to address women’s and girls’ poverty through the mobilization and scaling up of resources from the public, private, domestic and international institutions.  Governments were urged to expand fiscal space for investments to end poverty for women and girls.  Zimbabwe’s Government was applauded for having established the Women and Youth’s Bank, which some countries in Africa, such as Namibia did not have.

6.4 Keeping girls in schools protects them from HIV infection and reduces child marriage and other harmful social practices.  Zimbabwe must embrace the AU mantra, “Africa Educate Her” campaign as it strives to enhance access to education for all and attain an ‘Upper Middle Income Economy by 2030.

6.5 The member states intensify multi-stakeholder efforts at all levels to ensure that they integrate gender considerations into the Public Expenditure or Gender Budgeting frameworks of their countries.  Member states were urged to foster participation in the budget process through open budgets and community and citizen - led monitoring of service delivery, especially strengthening social protection financing systems and preventing corruption, which hinders the empowerment of women and girls.

6.6 Government prioritises the ‘Digital Skills Campaign’ to train women and youth to engage in empowerment programmes.  Financial inclusion has a trickle - down effect, which may lead to an increase in women in decision- making positions.

6.7 Given that women constitute the bulk of voters in many countries, it is imperative that member states seriously consider civic education for women to support each other and lessons can be drawn from Rwanda, Malawi and Kenya.  Through the women’s caucuses, Parliaments can push for legislation that ensures more women are elected into public offices.  Partnerships for change are therefore important if most Parliaments intend to increase the number of women participating in politics.

6.8 That climate change is real and member countries must brace up for climate financing to bridge the gender inequality gap in agriculture, including increased land ownership by women.  Members were urged to strengthen gender main streaming in climate financing and support women’s organisations leading local adaptation and mitigation efforts as well as increasing women’s organisations leading local adaptation and mitigation efforts as well as increasing women’s participation, representation and leadership in the climate financing agenda.

6.9 To enhance multi-dimensional poverty data and statistics, member states were urged to strengthen the capacity of national statistical offices and other Government institutions responsible for collecting, analysing, using and disseminating disaggregated data on women and girls.  The data would be essential in shedding light on the challenges faced by women and girls and in turn strengthen opportunities to use data to demand accountability.

6.10 That the care economy requires strengthening as it burdens women more than men.  Member states were urged to significantly scale up investment in the care economy as a source of decent employment that has the potential to narrow gender gaps and institute measures to ensure that women benefit from the transformation of work towards sustainable economies.

1. Recommendations for Implementation by the ZWPC
   • Prioritise training all Female Parliamentarians on how to benefit from the use of AI in this era and enhance their participation in decision making. (31 December 2024).

       7.2 Scale up its advocacy campaign and push for the enactment of gender and equality and strengthening of sexual harassment laws in Zimbabwe (31 December 2025).

7.3 Advocate for the programming on unpaid care work including engaging relevant stakeholders in Government and civil society to reduce the burden of unpaid care and domestic work on women and girls (on-going).

7.4 Advocate for a Gender Responsive Budget whereby more resources are availed to the gender institutions, namely; the Ministry of Women Affairs, Community, Small, and Medium Enterprises Development, Zimbabwe Gender Commission, Women and Youth Banks and other line ministries that handle health, social protection, land and agriculture and education, among others (on-going).

7.5 Lobby political parties and Government to reform electoral laws so that they become favourable for women to participate effectively in politics (ongoing targeting 2028 harmonised elections).

7.6 Lobby the Government to scale up climate financing to increase resources aimed at empowering women to participate in the mainstream economy.

7.7 Engage its stakeholders on the Beijing Platform of Action +30 Review Report to take stock of progress from 1994 to date in preparation for CSW 69.

7.8 Sensitisation of ZWPC members on the Zimbabwe Climate Change Gender Action Plan and also lobby for the increased participation of women in the climate change agenda including more representation from female parliamentarians at the Annual Conference of Parties on Climate (COP 29) in 2024 going forward as provided for in the Zimbabwe Climate Change Gender Action Plan.

8. Recommendations for implementation by the Portfolio Committee on Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development and the Thematic Committee on Gender and Development

8.1 The two Committees must continue to monitor budget implementation and push for more resources to be availed to the gender institutions that are availed to the gender institutions, namely; the Ministry of Women Affairs, Community, Small, and Medium Enterprises Development, Zimbabwe Gender Commission, Women and Youth Banks and other line ministries that handle health, social protection, land and agriculture and education among others (on-going).

8.2 The two Committees must monitor the implementation of CEDAW, Beijing Platform of Action + 30 Review and other regional, international and Conventions on Women’s and Girls’ Rights.

8.3 The two Committees must engage the Ministry of Lands and Agriculture on the land audit and assess the number of women who have benefitted from the land redistribution process and probably lobby for more land to be allocated to women (31 December 2024).

8.4 Engage the MWACSMED to work with the private players in the mobile and banking sectors in the market to enhance access to finance (Women Economic Empowerment) taking into account the wide reach of mobile money transfer in Zimbabwe. Lessons can be drawn from the ‘Husler Fund’ from Kenya which utilises the US dollar codes rather than internet services (on-going).

9. Conclusion

          The participation of the ZWPC at the CSW remains critical as it provides the platform for networking and sharing experiences and ideas for advancing gender equality globally. The ZWPC as a lobby group remains central in advocating for reforms and legislation that seeks to transform the lives of women and girls in Zimbabwe. This report is being tabled with five key action points that the ZWPC will implement before the next CSW meeting in March 2025.

          I, therefore, table this report for consideration and adoption by this august House.

Annexure A

Zimbabwe Women Parliamentary Caucus Action Plan in Preparation for CSW 69 in March 2025

Item	Activity	Timeframe	responsibility
1	Capacitation of ZWPC members on artificial intelligence (AI) and its impact on women and girls	31 December 2024	Parliament of Zimbabwe / Development Partners
2	Advocacy campaign to push for enactment of Gender Equality and strengthening on sexual harassment laws in Zimbabwe (Workshop or motion)	31 December 2024	Parliament of Zimbabwe / Development Partners
3	Capacity building on Gender Responsive Budgeting to enhance female parliamentarians’ participation in the national budget process	31 October 2024	Parliament of Zimbabwe / Development Partners
4	Lobby political parties and the Government to reform electoral laws so that they become favourable for women to participate effectively in the political arena	Ongoing	Parliament of Zimbabwe / Development Partners
5	Sensitisation of ZWPC on the Zimbabwe Climate Change Action Plan	31 October 2024	Parliament of Zimbabwe / Development Partners

 

          HON. SEN. MBOHWA: I move that the debate do now adjourn.

          HON. D. M. NCUBE: I second.

          Motion put and agreed to.

          Debate to resume: Tuesday, 23^rd July, 2024.

On the motion of THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. MHONA), the Senate adjourned at Twenty Three Minutes to Five o’clock p.m. until Tuesday, 23^rd July 2024.