The last State President Mugabe made a State of the Nation Address was in 2007.
THE Financial Gazette is providing live updates of President Robert Mugabe’s State of the Nation address.He is expected to deliver his speech at 3 pm.
* Speaker of the house Jacob Mudenda suspends parliament business in preparation for president’s address.
* President Mugabe arrives
*President Mugabe says government prioritises agriculture, beneficiation and encourages joint ventures and PPCs
*Drought has caused economic growth to be slow, says harvests is not as poor as earlier indicated
*Tourism sector to grow by five percent
*Banking act should be amended to promote the financial service sector.
*We will resuscitate Cottco to restore viability in the cotton farming sector” – Mugabe
*Zimbabwe will meet the digitilisation deadline. Government says after the digitisation project the country could have as many as 20 television channels thereby opening the broadcasting sector to many independent and private players.
*Government to pursue both external and internal capital injections to revive the economy. The country has struggled to attract FDI in recent years or funding for its economic blueprint, ZimAsset due to concerns over the perceived lack of respect for property rights and uncertain business climate.
*President encourages re-engagement with the International Monetary Fund and World Bank.
*Parastatal reform will start with the Grain Marketing Board and Cold Storage Company
* President encourages people in the diaspora to invest in Zimbabwe
*All law the hinder businesses to grow should be repelled
*Government recognises that improper procurement hampering economic revival
*SPB to be transformed into a non executive organisation to act as an advisor to gvt on procurement issues
*Parastatals have fallen beyond acceptable levels there will be a program to reform and revive them
*We are grateful to China for the US$90 million loan extended to us for medical equipment
*Government intend to come up with a win win situation as far as the Labour law is concerned. We want to remove common law that empowered employers to unilaterally fire employees without giving them compensation.
*As President Mugabe concludes MDC MPs calls on him to talk about the missing Itai Dzamara
*ZANU PF MPs shout Gushungo-Gushungo -Mugabe’s totem while MDC shout Save Save -Morgan Tsvangirai’s totem
*MDC MPs burst into song and dance singing “Zanu yaora baba”
*President Mugabe concludes address.