GOVERNMENT will soon unveil an International Advisory
Council which will advise President Mnangagwa on global economic issues and
push the re-engagement process.
The team will also assist the country in having the US
sanctions law, the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery (Amendment) Act
2018, removed.
Members of the council, some of whom are linked to
international finance institutions, could be announced this month.
Industrialists also proposed establishment of a local
advisory council during their interface with President Mnangagwa at State House
in Harare last Monday.
President Mnangagwa agreed with the proposal and asked the
industrialists to second names of their “best brains” to constitute the
grouping.
Last week, Deputy Chief Secretary to the President and
Cabinet (Presidential Communications) Mr George Charamba said: “We are working
on an international advisory team. So we will have a local advisory business
team but there is also going to be an international advisory team.
“By now we are in the final stages and in the next two to
three weeks, we should have some announcement of sorts. “We are looking at
retirees from IFIs; we are looking at persons from America, we are looking at
persons from Britain, persons from China; we are looking at characters from
Germany, we are looking at characters from South Africa; and we are also
looking at eminent Zimbabwean businesspeople.”
Mr Charamba said some of the people were consulted during
the 73rd Ordinary Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York in
September, but declined to mention names as consultations were ongoing.
“It worked very well in Rwanda. Rwanda used that to good
effect. That business council will not just advise the President on
international economic issues, it will also help us in the re-engagement
process.
“Essentially, it means helping us develop strategies of
rolling back sanctions and also engaging international finance markets for new
credit lines,” said Mr Charamba.
At a meeting between President Mnangagwa and Diasporan
Zimbabweans in New York in September, Finance and Economic Development Minister
Professor Mthuli Ncube — who was part of the Zimbabwe delegation to the General
Assembly — said the board would have about ten people.
“This is not an unusual path. Pakistan has announced its
international advisory board, it was done by the new Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Somalia has just set up a board, Somaliland has a board as well. Rwanda has a
board. In Nigeria there used to be a board but I’m not so sure now. But this is
common practice, we should get the best minds to assist us,” Prof Ncube
explained.
As part of President Mnangagwa’s international engagement
and re-engagement drive, his administration is lobbying for an end to economic
sanctions on Zimbabwe as well as normalisation of relations with multilateral
lenders and development partners.
This is in line with his vision to create an upper
middle-income by 2030.
US sanctions direct Americans at IFIs to block extension of
credit to Zimbabwe, and Prof Ncube is in January 2019 expected to travel to
that country as part of the anti-embargo lobby.
Last week, leading businessman and Econet founder Mr Strive
Masiyiwa said, “… sanctions should be removed, there’s no justification for
them anymore.
“They should be removed. I’ve always been on record to say
the sanctions are not justified and now we’re almost 20 years into the
sanctions. You can’t have one country operate with its hands tied behind its
back.” Sunday Mail
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