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Invictus raises AU$8m for Muzarabani oil/gas

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Invictus raises AU$8m for Muzarabani oil/gas

Invictus Energy, an Australia Stock Exchange (ASX) listed extractives junior exploring for oil and gas in Muzarabani, has completed a share placement with investors to raise about AU$8m exploration funding, days after completing an important agreement with the Government.

The funding will be applied towards the next phase of its exploration programme, which will see the firm drilling at least one oil and gas test well before the end of this year.

“Invictus Energy Limited, is pleased to confirm that, further to the ASX announcement on 24 March 2021, it has completed a placement to raise $8.0 million (before costs) by issuing 72 727 273 shares at $0.11 per share (Placement).

“Funds raised will go towards the upcoming 2D seismic campaign in SG 4571, basis of well design, long lead drilling items for the Mzarabani-1 exploration well, drilling rig tender preparation and general working capital,” Invictus said.

The good times are certainly rolling at Invictus Energy and its highly promising Muzarabani oil and gas exploration project, which would have far reaching implications for the Zimbabwean economy in the event of commercial discovery.

On Friday last week Invictus signed a Petroleum Exploration Development and Production Agreement (PEDPA) with the Government of Zimbabwe, at an event attended by President Mnangagwa, his deputy Vice President Constantino Chiwenga and Mines and Mining Development Minister Winston Chitando, who signed on behalf of the Government.

The PEDPA provides the framework for accelerated development of the Muzarabani oil and gas initiative, while also detailing roles and obligations of each party throughout the project lifecycle.

The PEDPA provides the Australian licence holder with the right to enter into a 25-year production licence following the exploration periods. The company is currently in the second exploration period.

The PEDPA also provides for Special Economic Zone (SEZ) status for the Muzarabani Project, which will facilitate a host of fiscal and non-fiscal incentives over the life of the project.

Additionally, the incentives include legal and financial stability, offshore banking, zero capital gains tax, tax holiday periods and 15 percent corporate rate thereafter.

President Mnangagwa said on Friday Zimbabwe’s oil and gas sector represented huge, unique and competitive investment opportunities given the significant potential for value chain linkages.

The President said the impact of the project will be felt in Mashonaland Central Province, Muzarabani and surrounding districts, as well as the wider Zimbabwe economy.

Apart from the potential for energy self-sufficiency, the President said other potential benefits of the oil and gas discovery included electricity generation, liquid petroleum, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), fertiliser production and petro-chemicals.

Such is the significance of this development that Invictus’ shares were up more than 25 percent on Monday morning, building on recent strong gains that have seen its share price increase more than three-fold in a period of three months.

The Cabora Bassa project, which encompasses the Mzarabani prospect, is a multi-trillion cubic feet and liquids-rich conventional gas condensate target, which is potentially the largest, undrilled seismically defined structure onshore Africa.

The prospect is defined by a robust dataset acquired by French oil giant Mobil in the early 1990s that includes seismic, gravity, aeromagnetic and geochemical data.

 

Business Weekly

Mine workers slam Labour Act violations

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Mine workers slam Labour Act violations

THE Zimbabwe Diamond and Allied Minerals Workers Union (ZDAMWU) has decried casualisation of labour in the mining industry.

The union last week said employees were being engaged for several years on fixed-term contracts every month.

In a letter addressed to the Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare ministry on March 2, ZDAMWU said the practice was being caused by the absence of set limits on the number of fixed-term contracts in the mining sector.

“The problem is emanating from the fact that our National Employment Council (NEC) has not set limits on the number of fixed-term contracts in the mining industry. Most employers in the mining industry are making workers sign consecutive fixed-term contracts on end,” the union said.

“There is no cap as to the number of fixed-term contracts a person can sign. Employees end up being engaged for several years, but being made to sign a fixed-term contracts usually every month, or if one is lucky, they get a three-month contract. This was never the intention of the Legislature when it provided for fixed-term contracts. Fixed-term contracts are mostly for temporary work, seasonal, or for a specific task. The mining industry is abusing this by engaging workers on short-term contracts, thereby destroying job security completely. How can a person work for one company for 10 years continuously, but remain a contract worker?” the union asked.

“However, as you may note, there is remedy provided for at law in case the specific industry NEC sleeps on the job. The honourable minister was given the powers to set the limits,” read the letter, which was addressed to Labour minister Paul Mavima.

The union said on December 10 2020, it wrote to NEC to look into the issue.

The NEC has not responded to the letter.

“It is high time the honourable minister exercises his powers and addresses this issue as soon as possible. The NEC has not touched its CBA [collective bargaining agreement] since its inception. It is outdated and this is the only remedy available to our members in the mining industry. We hope this matter shall receive the urgency it deserves,” the letter added.

In response to ZDAMWU, the Labour ministry said it was engaging NEC to find a solution to the problem.

“We have raised concerns as articulated in your letter with the employment council. (“We) will keep you updated,” the ministry said.

 

 

NewsDay

BREAKING: ZMF breaks levies impasse between Mzingwane RDC, miners

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BREAKING: ZMF breaks levies impasse between Mzingwane RDC, miners

The Zimbabwe Miners Federation (ZMF) has broken the levy impasse between the Mzingwane Rural District Council (RDC) and Miners from the area.

Mzingwane Rural District Council had hiked levies to astronomical amounts of up to $US20 000.

The ZMF cited reduced production due to the Covid-19 pandemic and proposed the fee hike be reconsidered when the situation normalizes.

ZMF President Ms. Henrietta Rushwaya and her team proposed a reduction of the levies to 1. Small scale mining $250.00, 2. Medium scale-own milling $500.00, 3. Custom Milling $750.00 much to ululation of miners in attendance.

In a letter signed by ZMF CEO Mr. Wellington Takavarasha the organization said:-

Pursuant to the meeting held with the miners in Mzingwane District and The Council representatives today the 29th of March 2021, we are hereby kindly requesting that you revisit the fees on a downward trend.

The following are the proposals;
1. Small scale mining $250.00 
2. Medium scale-own milling $500.00
3. Custom Milling $750.00

The basis of the request is due to the Covid-19 pandemic which has grossly affected the production by the small to medium scale mining sector. Please note that we promise to revert to the initially proposed fee structure in 2022 if the Covid-19 situation normalizes.

Once again, thank you very much for this well-organized and well-coordinated meeting. We propose that we hold such meetings as and when necessary.

Below is the initial fee hike by Mzingwane Rural District Council (RDC)

Mzingwane RDC astronomical fees

 

UK firm Contango in talks with Chinese steel giant for Hwange coal deal

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UK firm Contango in talks with Chinese steel giant for Hwange coal deal

Contango, the London-listed resources company, is in talks with Afrochine for the supply of coking coal to be produced at Contango’s Lubu project in Hwange.

A statement by Contango says it is in discussions with the “Zimbabwean subsidiary of a major Chinese industrial company and one the world’s largest stainless steel producers”.

According to the coal company, the potential offtake partner “has a sizeable footprint in Zimbabwe and is planning to construct a US$1 billion carbon steel plant in the country, with capacity of two million tonnes of steel per annum”.

World number one stainless firm Tsingshan, through its local arm Afrochine, plans to set up an iron ore mine and steel plant near Mvuma, a long-delayed project that government is desperate to kick off midyear. Afrochine, which runs a nickel smelter at Selous, is building coke batteries in Hwange to prepare for production.

“Given the Lubu Coking Coal Project’s proximity to Hwange, the Company and the Potential Offtake Partner have entered into discussions with the view to Contango supplying the coking coal for the coke batteries on a long-term offtake,” Contango says in an announcement to the London Stock Exchange on Friday.

Coking coal is a key component in steel manufacturing.

Contango: supply targets

The company said given the “potential significance of an agreement”, it would halt mining operations at Lubu until these talks are done. Contango expects discussions to be completed by April. A site visit is planned in April and Contango will open a trial pit and a bulk sample will be sent to Afrochine so it can conduct a burn test, needed to assess the quality of the coal.

Carl Esprey, Contango CEO, said: “The potential offtake partner, together with its global conglomerate parent company, are investing heavily in Zimbabwe as they look to establish an industrial steel and coke hub in-country, capitalising on the significant demand for construction materials both in the region and overseas.”

In June, Contango started trading on the London Stock Exchange after completing the acquisition of Consolidation Growth Holdings’ interest Lubu. Contango now has a 70% interest in the Lubu project, said to hold some of the largest coal reserves in the region.

Last year, Contango began supply talks with two local companies, CoalZim Marketing and South Mining. The two agreements, when in play, would see Lubu supplying a minimum of 32,000 tonnes a month, which would potentially earn the company at least US$1million per month.

 

NewZwire

Oil deals open to everyone

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Oil deals open to everyone

The signing of the petroleum exploration, development and production agreement with the Australian companies, is a deal with potential to make Zimbabwe one of the major oil producers if tests at Muzarabani deposits are successful.

The investor has put in a lot of time and effort to determine the likelihood of natural gas and petroleum condensates in the Cahora Bassa basin around Muzarabani in Mashonaland Central. This  is important for two reasons.

First, and most obviously, it clears the way for Invictus Energy and its majority shareholder Geo-Associates to invest another US$15 million to US$30 million to drill two test wells this year into the formations they have identified as a potential gas and oil reservoir.

Quite naturally, before they sink this sort of money into drilling 4,5km deep wells by October, they want their legal position, with both their rights and obligations, clearly spelt out. At the same time Zimbabwe is anxious to find out if the potential reserves do exist, and if they do, to ensure that they can be exploited, and is more than happy to sign the deal that meets the needs of both Zimbabwe and the exploration companies.

Invictus has already spent quite a bit of its own money, around US$3,5 million, working over the results of a seismic survey done by Mobil in the 1990s and then having its work checked by an independent consultancy. It came to a different conclusion to Mobil, reckoning that the probability of finding natural gas in exploitable quantities was worth the investment into test wells, with the possibility of finding some commercial quantities of condensates, crude oil, being a useful bonus.

The second important point to note in Friday’s signing, as President Mnangagwa was careful to state, is that Zimbabwe is more than willing to deal with serious investors and move rapidly to draft and sign off the commercial agreements. Invictus and Geo-Associates are not charities; they are companies that hope to make a fair profit from their investment.

A lot depends on whether the three domed-layers of hard strata that Invictus has discovered are in place and still trap the rotten remains of plants and animals that died in a rifted inlet of the early Indian Ocean in Cretaceous times. At the same time Zimbabwe will win, if the investment pays off, with assured energy self-sufficiency and just as importantly a source of industrial raw materials for the fertiliser industry and other new ventures.

This shows others thinking about investment in Zimbabwe that the Second Republic is going far beyond rhetoric and is prepared to welcome investors. We have already been making major investment deals with South African and Russian platinum companies, and more recently with an American gold producer, an Australian lithium company and a top Chinese steel company. Our doors are open to everyone. Previous investors have, without prompting, made it clear that they are getting a fair deal.

At the same event, President Mnangagwa stressed that Zimbabwean companies and other investors need to be prepared if the test wells produce gas and oil.

The potential quantities of gas and oil involved are useful and desirable, and will push Zimbabwe into the top ranks of oil exporters. The natural gas, which forms the bulk of the estimated reserves, can be put to use fairly quickly. Already Sable Chemicals, which is importing natural gas products to make fertilisers, has signed a preliminary deal with Invictus to run a pipeline to Kwekwe to get gas on tap and after it has extracted its products, there will be other products that can be made use of in the industrial area.

Natural gas is used increasingly to generate power, without refining, into a power station. They can be built quickly; basically all they are is a row of jet engines connected to generators with the civil works being little more than a shed to keep off the rain. So the discovery of natural gas will allow Zimbabwe to build its third large power station to complement Kariba South and the expanded Hwange coal thermal quite quickly.

The economic growth that is laid down in our national development strategy will need that third station sooner than we think. So the gas station would come just in time, as we need to look for the next station after the present expansion works at Hwange are completed.

When we talk about exports from Muzarabani we will find that we can make more money exporting electricity on the existing regional grid than laying long pipelines first. Gas stations can, incidentally, be started up quickly so we could use ours to generate the extra profits from peak power supply to our developing neighbours.

Any discovery of oil will need a longer lead time. Either we need to build a refinery as well, to convert it into fuels, or need to build a pipeline so we can ship it to a port and from there to a regional refinery. Both operations take time.

But regardless of these factors, we will be able to move a lot faster into the modern industrial world if we do find petroleum and gas near Muzarabani. So we need to keep our fingers crossed and start thinking on what such a useful discovery will mean and how we can exploit it for maximum national benefit. Those benefits go far beyond the fuel that most think about. They mean raw materials, infrastructure, jobs, wealth creation, and faster industrialisation.

As the President noted, having a major source of energy and raw materials makes the rapid development we need to see over the next decade to create our middle-income economy both easier and faster.

 

The Sunday Mail

Invictus injects US$30m to oil, gas well

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Invictus injects US$30m to oil, gas well

INVICTUS Energy says it will invest between US$15 million and US$30 million towards drilling at least one oil and gas exploration well, likely before end of year, chairman Joe Mutizwa has said.

Speaking during the signing of the Petroleum Exploration Development and Production Agreement (PEDPA) at State House on Friday, Mr Mutizwa said there was potential to discover commercial quantities of oil and gas in the Cahora Bassa Basin.

The forward work consists of acquiring additional 2D seismic data in the licence area to provide better subsurface imaging to guide the drill targets and then drilling at least one oil and gas exploration well,” he said.

Mr Mutizwa told delegates at the launch, including President Mnangagwa, Vice President Constantino Chiwenga and Mines and Mining Development Minister Winston Chitando that Invictus has invested over US$4 million towards efforts to discover oil and gas.

Work undertaken thus far includes transcription and reprocessing of seismic data, gravity and magnetic tapes and gathering of additional geochemical data.

“The sub-surface studies integrating these data sets has revealed significant potential in the licence area, particularly the Muzarabani prospect, which has been independently estimated to contain 8,2 trillion cubic feet and 247 million barrels of conventional gas condensate (light oil and one of the largest conventional oil and gas targets globally,” Mr Mutizwa said.

The area being explored by Invictus was previously explored by Mobil in the early 1990s, stretching from Victoria Falls to the eastern border with Mozambique with Invictus being the only entity to do so since Mobil.

President Mnangagwa said Zimbabwe was excited at the prospect of successful oil and gas discovery, which will bring significant benefits that include energy self-sufficiency, employment creation, petro-chemicals and LPG gas production.

Recently Invictus in accordance with the requirements of rules for listed firms in Australia,  has  requested a trading halt of its shares, pending announcement of the PEDPA.

“The company is expecting to announce an update to the market on or prior to the commencement of trading on 29 March 2021,” Invictus said in a statement.

This comes after Invictus last week received firm commitments from new and existing shareholders and institutional investors to raise circa US$10 million for exploration, working capital and procurement of long lead equipment for test well drilling, targeted around October.

And towards the end of last year, the Australia Stock Exchange (ASX) listed firm received a non-binding offer for a farm-in agreement to the Cahorra Bassa area, encompassing the Muzarabani prospect.

The PEDPA with the Government provides the framework for progression and development of the oil and gas project, terms and rights of all parties, including each party’s entitled share of the product, assuming commercial discovery.

The PEDPA between Geo Associates, the controlling shareholder in Invictus, and the Government of Zimbabwe, was reviewed and approved by an Inter-Ministerial Committee established by the Government. The PEDPA provides the framework for progression of the Cahora Bassa (Muzarabani) project through the exploration, appraisal, development and production phases and obligations and rights of each party over the project life cycle.

Invictus said, earlier, the farm-in offer for the proposed transaction was subject to completion of further technical, legal and commercial due diligence by both parties.

Further, it was also awaiting approval and agreement by the Government and execution of binding farm out agreement(s).

Farm-in agreements are contractual arrangements common in the Australian exploration sector.

Typically, the owner of an interest in a tenement (farmor) agrees to transfer a percentage of their interest to another party (farmee) if the farmee meets specified exploration commitments or contributes a defined level of expenditure towards exploration activities.

Invictus is working on a petroleum product sharing agreement (PPSA), containing the fiscal provisions of the project.

This includes the Republic of Zimbabwe’s profit/product share, and will take effect after the commencement of the production phase of the oil/gas project.

Invictus said earlier that the PPSA was undergoing independent review, which was expected to be completed early in the first quarter this year, following which the PPSA would be finalised and executed.

Together, the PEDPA and PPSA form the Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) between Zimbabwe and Geo Associates and, Invictus said, demonstrates the Government’s commitment to implementing investor friendly reforms and promoting and protecting foreign investment.

The PSA will ensure that a predictable, stable and transparent legal and fiscal regime is put in place, that is commensurate with terms in the region, follows international best industry practice, meets the country’s aspirations and provides investors and the country with a fair share of any developed resources.

Invictus said following the completion of the field reconnaissance programme in Muzarabani and receipt of submissions from multiple vendors, the company had selected its preferred contractor to undertake a seismic acquisition campaign in 2021.

The company planned to start detailed planning post formal contract award to enable the acquisition campaign to commence after the conclusion of the rainy season.

Invictus is planning to acquire a minimum of 400km line of 2D seismic, which exceeds the work programme obligations for the current (2nd) exploration period.

Invictus Energy is an independent oil and gas exploration company focused on high impact energy resources in sub-Saharan Africa.

Its asset portfolio consists of a highly prospective 250 000 acres within the Cahora Bassa Basin in Zimbabwe.

Special Grant 4571 contains the world class multi-trillion cubic feet (TCF) Muzarabani and Msasa conventional gas-condensate prospects.

 

The Sunday Mail

Fidelity official gold buying prices Monday 29 March 2021

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Fidelity official gold buying prices Monday 29 March 2021

Fidelity Printers and Refiners (FPR) official gold buying prices Monday 29 March 2021

  • SG 90% AND ABOVE 49 832.33/kg
  • SG ABOVE 85% BUT BELOW 90% $48 997.15/kg
  • SG ABOVE 80% BUT BELOW 85% $47 883.58/kg
  • SG ABOVE 75% BUT BELOW 80% $47 326.79/kg
  • SAMPLE BELOW 10g BUT ABOVE 5g $48 440.37/kg
  • FIRE ASSAY CASH $50 110.72/kg

 

Cash available. Fidelity Printers and Refiners prices will be changing daily in relation to world market prices.

Contact FPR

No. 1 George Drive, Msasa, Harare, Email: [email protected], Telephone: +263 242-486670, +263 242-486694, +263 242-487131, +263 242-447810-5

ZMF on local equipment drive

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ZMF on local equipment drive

THE Zimbabwe Miners Federation (ZMF) has noted that there is a need for miners to buy locally manufactured mining equipment as most of the imported ones had a short life span.

Speaking at the ZMF service providers strategic meeting in Bulawayo on Friday, ZMF president Ms Henrietta Rushwaya said she had engaged the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science and Technology Development so that they could meet with local engineers and the Minister of Mines and Mining Development.

“I talked to the Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science and Technology Development Minister to say would it not be feasible that we could have a meeting with him, the local engineers and our Mines and Mining Development Minister with regards to this endless importation of equipment.

We have technical universities especially that have capacity to actually produce similar equipment. When we were growing up, we used to have those good wheelbarrows. The introduction of education 5.0 is quite essential in the sense that our local graduates are able to come up with innovations that can make Zimbabweans use and rely on tailor-made home-grown solutions.”

Ms Rushwaya said the ZMF website that was launched last week was meant to bring to the attention of miners genuine suppliers and service providers so that they do not continue falling prey to bogus ones.

“You will be able to identify manufacturers and their locations and how best they can assist you. Also, to cut down on costs of getting a geologist very far from you, on our website you will get the one who specialises in a specific area that you are in and this also assists to avoid over pegging in some areas,” she said.

She also noted that as the country moves towards the attainment of vision 2030, ZMF was working on having capacity to get land and properties to build offices in every city to cater for over 1,5 million unregistered artisanal miners. Tierra Chemicals managing director and southern region suppliers committee chairperson Mr Edward Chengeta said there was a need for suppliers to come together and work on supplying wholesome packages.

“As suppliers there is a need for back-to-back partnerships, when someone is doing head gears and not doing chemicals why can’t we partner and complement each other?” said Mr Chengeta.

Midlands Metals Private Limited Work sales and marketing manager Mr Ignatius Hege bemoaned the exportation of scrap metal.

“We need Government’s support to say that let’s stop the exportation of scrap because it is making life difficult for us. If we do not get the scrap metal, we are not in a position to manufacture consumables for the mines, yet mining a key economic driver at the moment,” said Mr Hege.

 

The Sunday News

Women in mining seek financial assistance

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Women in mining seek financial assistance

WOMEN in various economic sectors have said they need Government to financially assist them so that they can positively contribute to the 2030 goal of a middle-income economy.

Speaking in an online executive dialogue on women’s contribution to Zimbabwe’s vision 2030 last week, Zimbabwe Miners Federation vice president and a chrome miner, Mrs Lindiwe Mpofu said access to capital and foreign currency was affecting women in the mining sector as well as the male counterparts.

“Access to capital and access to foreign currency affects the mining industry as a whole. There is a need for the banking sector inclusion as we are yet to see a lot of banks embrace mining as an industry that they will fund and make other programmes available as well. Some of the banks, Metbank and CBZ are taking initiatives towards miners but we still need more banks so that we have more access to capital and different types of facilities accessible by different miners,” said Mrs Mpofu.

She said chrome mining was capital intensive because of the machinery aspect, as well as for the gold and the semiprecious minerals, hence there was a need for financial assistance to encourage more women to venture into mining.

“We have brought before Government the issue of chrome pricing. I also sit as a consultative committee member of the Minerals and Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe (MMCZ) and executive board member Zimbabwe Femcom chapter to try and make sure the issue of chrome pricing is addressed. Chrome miners are subjected to pricing as low as $12, hence it is important for the chrome miner as an individual to understand the worth of chrome and get the proper pricing ranges.”

Mrs Mpofu said there was need for the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development to take action on the chrome policy as well as finishing off of the cadastral system and for Government to consider reorganising its department to have the services of the engineering and geology department reactivated within the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development. She added that women in the mining sector were still facing challenges associated with discrimination.

Ayana Africa Travel managing director Mrs Tina Nyabonda-Mubwanda said more inclusiveness of women at the level of policy making and operating in the tourism sector was essential. She said the tourism as an industry was not an easy or cheap one to start as it was also capital intensive when it came to setting up lodges and any other infrastructure related.

“We need to see a lot of Government support in terms of funding smaller operators coming into the industry. Also, we need to see more information about our own country being available on more digital platforms so that the tourism sector can be boosted more on the platforms,” she said.

 

The Sunday News

Oil and gas deal strategic: President

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Oil and gas deal strategic: President

Government has made considerable progress in delivering on developmental projects and other election promises outlined in its manifesto despite disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic, President Mnangagwa has said.

In his keynote address to the first session of the 115th ZANU PF Central Committee in Harare yesterday, the President said one of the notable achievements is the signing of the US$30 million oil and gas exploration deal, which will see the country become the fifth-largest oil producer in the world if deposits in Muzarabani, Mashonaland Central, prove to be commercially exploitable.

Two oil and gas wells will be drilled by October this year, while production might start as early as March next year.

“The Second Republic is on a permanent and irreversible path of modernising, industrialising and growing our economy,” he said.

“Yesterday (Friday), I witnessed the signing ceremony of a US$30 million oil and gas exploration agreement between my Government, Geo-Associates Private Limited Company and Invictus Energy, an Australian Stock Exchange-listed company. This strategic project has far-reaching positive prospects to transform the livelihoods of the people of Muzarabani District in particular and boost the (Gross Domestic Product) GDP of Mashonaland Central Province.”

He said investors are confident “they will find oil”.

“If that happens, according to estimates, Zimbabwe will be the fifth-largest oil producer, and that is a unique position.”

Agriculture, he added, was poised to register gains anchored by a bumper harvest, while the Presidential Horticulture Programme is reportedly taking root.

“The recent launch of community-based export-led garlic production in our country has exciting prospects.

“This initiative will undoubtedly contribute to the achievement of sustainable, broad-based empowerment and the growth of rural industry systems.

“Provinces and districts are expected to urgently adopt and replicate these and other horticulture projects in their areas.”

President Mnangagwa said landmark successes continue to be recorded in mining, infrastructure development, manufacturing and social service delivery.

“Progress is being made in the construction and rehabilitation of our national infrastructure, benchmarked with world-class standards,” he said.

“Following the incessant rains which damaged our roads throughout the country, Government has approved the urgent rehabilitation of all roads, through the use of our own resources and local manpower.”

He reiterated that the fight against corruption continues.

The Government is currently seized with addressing issues arising from illegal settlements and poor service delivery in urban local authorities.

“Determined to overcome the challenges being faced by our urban residents, the party must seize every available opportunity to engage the urban residents,” said the President.

“The ground is fertile for us to vote out the corrupt and squabbling opposition.

“On the Information Communication Technology front, I commissioned an ICT device factory courtesy of our Government’s joint venture with Inspur Group of the People’s Republic of China.

“The factory enables us to locally produce various ICT devices.”

President Mnangagwa called upon ZANU PF to ensure that all sectors of the economy benefit from e-Government systems and ICT-enabling infrastructure.

The roll-out of the national Covid-19 vaccination programme by the Government, he said, will continue until everyone is safe from the disease.

“Earlier this week (last week), I launched the second phase of the National Covid-19 Vaccination Programme in Victoria Falls.

“This second phase will now include, teachers, security service sector, the Judiciary, the elderly and people with chronic conditions.

“The third phase will be later rolled out for the rest of the society, until we achieve herd immunity. We can only be safe when everyone is safe from Covid-19.”

He urged the Central Committee, which is the party’s highest decision-making organ, to remain true to the expectations of forbearers who left them the sacred responsibility to economically empower the people.

The President emphasised the importance of unity, including galvanising party structures such as District Co-ordinating Committees to help develop and grow the economy.

Implementing provisions of the party constitution, policies, programmes and the realisation of the promises made in the 2018 election manifesto are expected to be at the centre of DCC activities.

President Mnangagwa said: “DCC posts should not be seen as stepping stones for canvassing support for parliamentary and other positions.

“The respect of the party constitution, loyalty, discipline and servant leadership must always be our guiding principles.

“We are a party that serves the people and serving does not entail having a post. There is no room for unbridled ambitions in the party.”

He challenged veterans of the liberation struggle to display their war-time vibrancy and mobilisation acumen in preparation for the 2023 elections.

“In our political mobilisation matrix, our women and youth leagues must not be left behind. I commend the Youth League for their recent successful mobilisation efforts.

“However, much more needs to be done by Youth League structures, at provincial, district, branch and cell and village levels to encourage their peers to join the party and register as voters.”

The President invited those “who are still in the political wilderness” to “come home”.

“Our arms remain outstretched and there is room for everyone in ZANU PF.”

The religious community was applauded for their continued prayers and intercessions for the country.

“Yesterday (Friday), I hosted a National Thanksgiving Service which was attended by various religious leaders and stakeholders.

“The National Thanksgiving Service and National Vaccination Programme in Victoria Falls reinforced the culture that promotes unity of purpose, national cohesion and oneness in our country.

“As leaders in various provinces, we are exhorted to further entrench unity, peace, love and harmony among our people,” he said.

 

The Sunday Mail

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