Zimbabwe-Algeria friendship births economic partnership
Fungi Kwaramba in ALGIERS, Algeria
ZIMBABWE and Algeria should ride on the unbreakable bonds of friendship and political solidarity that predate the country’s independence in 1980 to forge ties in economic and technological co-operation, President Mnangagwa has said.
In a joint press conference with his Algerian counterpart, President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, at the Presidential Palace last night, the President said their deliberations aimed at creating a more prosperous future for the two countries.
“We engaged in fruitful discussions on a wide range of issues that included political, social and economic partnerships, as well as peace and security co-operation. All our deliberations aimed at fostering a more stable and prosperous future for our countries, the African continent and the world at large,” he said.
“Riding on the unbreakable bonds of friendship and political solidarity, Zimbabwe is ready to strengthen economic co-operation. We thus indicated our commitment to fully implement the various agreements under our co-operation framework, the Joint Permanent Commission on Co-operation (JPCC), whose Fourth Session preceded this State visit; the outcome of which has seen the signing of MoUs (Memoranda of Understanding) we have witnessed.”
President Mnangagwa and his host witnessed the signing of agreements in the fields of technical and vocational training, higher education and scientific research, tourism and energy co-operation.
“All these should be utilised to unlock greater cooperation in the identified fields.
“Accelerated socio-economic transformation is receiving our shared priority through the people-to-people and business-to-business exchanges. In this regard, the signing of the agreement establishing the joint Zimbabwe-Algeria Business Council is a significant step in the right direction,” he said.
Under this mechanism, the two countries agreed to identify and promote the export of products, taking advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Area.
Zimbabwe’s trade agency, ZimTrade, was in Algeria to identify areas of co-operation, with the export of tobacco to the North African country already being pursued.
“Further, Zimbabwe stands ready to co-operate in the area of the transformation of subsoil assets and other resources into value-added products. These must benefit our people. The MoU our two countries signed in 2023 on energy co-operation should be implemented and translate to investments and partnerships in power generation, gas and renewables, among other aspects,” the President said.
Algeria runs a US$260 billion economy that is driven largely by fossil fuels and gas.
Agriculture also significantly contributes to the country’s GDP.
Over the years, Zimbabwean students have been offered scholarships to study at Algerian colleges, especially in science and technology-related fields.
“The partnership awards scholarships to Zimbabwean students pursuing studies in science, technology, education and mathematics, cyber security, artificial intelligence (AI) and nanotechnology. This is going a long way towards Zimbabwe’s human capital in these emerging fields towards accelerating the industrilisation and modernisation of all sectors of our economy,” added the President.
Earlier, the President also visited the Maqam Echahid (Martyr’s Memorial), where he laid a wreath before touring a museum packed with Algerian war and historical memorabilia.
On the international front, President Mnangagwa noted the need for increased collaboration and partnerships among like-minded nations.
“This State visit has, therefore, allowed our two countries to re-affirm our shared commitment to multilateralism and a rules-based global order.
“The need to ‘silence the guns” in Africa by ending war and conflict, as well as the scourge of terrorism, is still urgent and of critical importance.
“Zimbabwe reiterates, unwavering solidarity with the people of Western Sahara in their just struggle for self-determination. We support the route of dialogue to end the conflict in Palestine and the need to address the dire humanitarian situation affecting the people of Gaza.”
A State banquet was also held in honour of President Mnangagwa yesterday.
The President, who wraps up his visit today, is accompanied by Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Prof Amon Murwira; Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science and Technology Development Ambassador Frederick Shava; Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Industry Barbara Rwodzi and other top Government officials.
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