The Sunday Mail
Prosper Ndlovu in LUSAKA, Zambia
ZIMBABWE is committed to entrenching constitutionalism and adhering to democratic tenets as critical pillars in achieving prosperity and contributing towards regional and international advancement, President Emmerson Mnangagwa has said.
In his speech after being conferred with a honorary doctorate in laws here by the University of Zambia yesterday, the President said there was need for regional leaders to cooperate in order to unlock inherent opportunities in the region.
“In our quest to achieve sustainable economic development, it is imperative that we remain cognisant of the rule of law as a universal instrument of development. To this end, we must commit as countries and as a people to entrench within our respective jurisdictions constitutionalism and democratic tenets for the good of our people,” he said.
“We must, thus, strengthen legal frameworks and institutions which fight corruption as well as propel the modernisation and industrialisation of our economies to improve the livelihoods of our people. As African governments, we must never shy away from entrenching the rule of law for the people to benefit and protect them.”
President Mnangagwa, who is a lawyer by profession and is an alumni of the University of Zambia, said empowerment of ordinary people must be a governance priority that should be administered continually with increased focus on management of economies, political, cultural, scientific and social interests of the country through channels and institutions provided by law.
To achieve a better tomorrow and a prosperous continent, President Mnangagwa called for collective involvement towards ensuring that people’s aspirations, interests, wishes and rights were embodied, not just in laws, but also in the prudent implementation of the set development agenda.
“Our people must always be encouraged to share a common aspiration to respect the law, trust the law and defend the law,” he said.
To that end, President Mnangagwa said, higher education was a critical component of sustainable development.
One of the greatest legacies that his Government desired to bequeath to future generations, he added, was quality education that is anchored on the needs of the market and in line with global skills demand.
“It is my wish that the youth of today similarly take advantage of higher and tertiary learning institutions to capacitate themselves to contribute towards poverty eradication and ultimately in the modernisation of their countries,” he said.
