I feel at home, Zambia made me – Mnangagwa

“…I feel I have come back home after about 40 years outside Zambia, the country which made me who I am today…” Mnangagwa wrote in a visitors book at State House on Friday.

Then later evening President Mnangagwa flew back to Zimbabwe and wrote the following message about his visit and engagements in the week.

Dear Friends,

I have just arrived home from Zambia, where I met with President Lungu, and I wanted to update you all on another busy week in our quest to build a new Zimbabwe.

As well as Zambia, earlier in the week I visited both Namibia and Mozambique, to meet with their respective presidents. These visits allow us to update our friends and partners in the region about developments in our country. We want to assure our SADC brothers and the wider international community about our commitment to building a transparent and open economy, and to holding free and fair elections. They also give us the opportunity to engage with Zimbabweans living in these countries, and invite them to be part of our new Zimbabwe.

The high point of the week was the Global Shapers Townhall in Harare yesterday, during which I answered questions from our youth, and most importantly, listened to their concerns. I invited them to speak out and to open a dialogue with me, and assured them that they will find a good listener, sympathetic to their needs. I left the event energised and enthused by the potential and dynamism of our youth, and more convinced than ever that it is they who will take our nation to greatness.

This youth townhall meeting, as well as a similar business forum I also attended, are part of my preparations for my visit to the World Economic Forum in Davos next week, the first time a Zimbabwean President will address this crucial event. I held these consultative events as it is important that, as I go on this vital national mission, I have the concerns and ideas of my fellow countrymen and women in my ears and in my heart. I am going there to represent you.

Another important aspect of my preparations has been two major international interviews I have given this week – for Bloomberg and the Financial Times. In both I sent a message to international investors that Zimbabwe is open for business, and that they have a friend and partner in my administration. For too long the word Zimbabwe has had negative connotations in some parts of the world. Interviews such as these will go some way to repairing our image and attracting investors, who in turn will create jobs and development.

I end the week at home, reading your Facebook messages and comments. I am grateful that so many of you take the time to share your questions, concerns and advice with me, and I make an effort to read as many of them as I can. In the next few days, I will begin answering some of your questions, opening a new and important area of dialogue between us.

Have a wonderful and blessed weekend.