Vusumuzi Dube, Online News Editor
THE Midlands province has set its sights towards ensuring that they attain the Second Republic’s Vision 2030 of having an upper middle-class economy, two years earlier in line with President Mnangagwa’s call to accelerate programmes and projects towards the new policy direction.
This emerged during the province’s strategic planning workshop, where the Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Cde Owen Ncube, said President Mnangagwa has demanded that the target of achieving an Upper Middle-Income Society by 2030 be achieved by the year 2028, which implies that the entire Government machinery must immediately accelerate all its programmes and projects in line with the new policy direction.
“I urge you all to commit yourself fully to this critical task which comes at the backdrop of the 2023 Harmonised Elections won resoundingly by the ruling party Zanu-PF. In the effect the electorate overwhelmingly spoke and endorsed the developmentally oriented pro-people Zanu-PF manifesto to guide Government programming.
“Subsequently, the new administration’s second term mandate now focuses on sustaining and scaling up success realised by the Second Republic during its first term as we seek to attain an Upper Middle-Income Society earlier than 2030. The thrust, therefore, is to leap frog socio-economic development,” said Minister Ncube.
He said some of the strategies towards the attainment of Vision 2030 earlier was through practising servant leadership, accelerating socio-economic development through ambitious industrialisation and modernisation drive and leveraging on provincial comparative and competitive advantages underpinned by the devolution and decentralisation agenda.
Other strategies, according to Minister Ncube are improving livelihoods of communities by providing quality ,affordable and accessible services leaving no on and no place behind and allowing Zimbabwe to transit to a high income country.
“As we do so, I also urge you to take heed of His Excellency, the President’s call for Government to adopt international best practices. Indeed, our achievements are as a result of a favourable working relationship between and among our internal and external stakeholders. Education 5.0 has signalled a new era of institutions of higher learning becoming leading players in the socio-economic transformation of the country as evidenced by productive industrial hubs and registered patents,” he said.
The minister further called on the Provincial Development Committee cluster chairpersons to understand that their deliverables will have an impact on the success or lack thereof of the province’s strategic plan.
“This calls for unity of purpose among all Ministries, Departments and Agencies as I indicated earlier.
Your success is our success, your failure equally becomes our failure. Thus our plans and efforts must be complementary and integrated as we all serve one client, our beautiful country Zimbabwe. Traditional leaders are the cornerstone of our development plans and our communities are hinged on unique attributes that are best understood by their leaders. The values of Ubuntu unite our social fabric as foundations of national development and aspirations,” said Minister Ncube.
