The Sunday News
THE Sadc secretariat has expressed satisfaction on preparations for the forthcoming Sadc Summit of Heads of State and Government, noting that it was now all systems go for the summit that starts on Thursday.
In a telephone interview from the resort town of Victoria Falls, Sadc head of public relations Ms Leefa Penehupifo Martin said they were happy with preparations, revealing that the host country, Zimbabwe, had so far left no stone unturned to ensure the successful holding of the summit.
She said they were awaiting the arrival of ministers on Wednesday ahead of the Council of Ministers meeting the following day.
“I arrived in the country today (Saturday) and I am happy to say everything is on track. The host (Zimbabwe) has clearly done a tremendous job in terms of preparing for this summit; they have put together a wonderful facility, the accommodation is superb and the people are so wonderful and welcoming.
“As a secretariat we are very confident that this will be quite a huge and successful summit and we expect no hitches when everything starts on Thursday,” said Ms Martin.
She said the major challenges they were facing were not related to the host country but were mainly to do with airlines which were failing to co-ordinate their connecting flights to Victoria Falls, mainly from Johannesburg, South Africa.
“Some of us arrived here without our luggage because the airlines are failing to co-ordinate their connecting flights. We hope that by Wednesday when the ministers start trooping in they could have at least rectified this or else it will be quite a hassle but besides that it’s now all systems go,” she said.
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Cde Simbarashe Mumbengegwi also noted that it was all systems go for the holding of the summit.
He noted that everything in terms of logistics was now in place.
“As you might know, as a country we hosted the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) general assembly, so we are using both the infrastructure and the experience we gained there.
“We have received great support from the Sadc family and the corporate world, which we greatly appreciate and it is this support which makes us confident that come Thursday this summit will be a successful one,” said Cde Mumbengegwi.
He said they expected all 15 States to attend.
On Friday, Foreign Affairs Permanent Secretary Ambassador Joey Bimha toured the venue of the summit, Elephant Hills Resort, together with deputy director regional co-operation in the ministry, Henry Mukonoweshuro and expressed satisfaction with preparations.
The summit will see President Mugabe assuming chairmanship of Sadc.
Ministers will arrive on Wednesday ahead of the Council of Ministers Meeting on 14 August.
Heads of State and Government are expected to arrive on August 16, the day when the Troika Organ on Politics, Defence and Security will meet.
The closing ceremony will be held on 18 August.
