Nduduzo Tshuma in JOHANNESBURG, South Africa
PRESIDENT Mnangagwa is expected here today to join fellow leaders at the Liberation Movements Summit, which enters its final and most crucial phase tomorrow with a high-level meeting of party heads.
The three-day summit, which began yesterday, brings together former liberation movements from Southern Africa for strategic deliberations on safeguarding the region’s political legacy, defending hard-won freedom and tackling rising geopolitical and socio-economic challenges.
The six Southern African liberation movements are the ANC of South Africa, who are also the chair and host, Zanu PF of Zimbabwe, MPLA of Angola, SWAPO of Namibia, Frelimo of Mozambique and CCM of Tanzania.
They have been joined by parties from the region and beyond as well as key institutions like the Museum of African Liberation.
The summit runs under the theme: “Defending the liberation gains, advancing integrated socio-economic development, strengthening solidarity for a better Africa.”
The presence of leaders of the movements will add weight to the summit, a departure from previous events where secretaries-generals represented the movements.
Zanu PF Secretary-General Dr Obert Mpofu and heads of party leagues arrived yesterday and engaged in interactions with sister parties.
The interactions build to pre-summit deliberations by the movements on a number of critical issues with their findings to be presented at the indaba.
As part of the summit, former presidents Thabo Mbeki of South Africa and Joaquim Chissano of Mozambique, last night hosted a dinner to discuss emerging issues in the region and abroad.
In an interview at his Pretoria offices, Zimbabwe Ambassador to Zimbabwe David Hamadziripi said President Mnangagwa’s participation underlines the importance that the country attaches to the engagements.
“This summit comes at a very important time in the region and in the world because of the various geopolitical developments that we are observing and it is important that the leaders of the liberation movements take stock of these developments, coordinate their responses and coordinate the mitigation measures that we may take as a region in order to deal with the current challenges,” he said.
“His Excellency the President is going to come himself, underlying and attaching the importance that we have to this discussion, to this coordination and to exchange views with his colleagues in the region.
“We, as the embassy, are indeed honoured and privileged to receive His Excellency, the President.
“We are expecting him to arrive on Saturday and for him to participate in this important gathering.”
Amb Hamadziripi said sister organisations from China, Russia and Cuba among others would take part in the summit, which he said was a reflection “of the historical ties and historical contributions that they made to our liberation struggle and to the successes of our liberation struggles and of course the friendship, solidarity and their enduring involvement in our socio-economic development”.
The ANC said the summit is a strategic intervention in organisational renewal, deepening intra-party solidarity and responding to contemporary challenges including imperial pressures, economic challenges and neo-colonial interference.
“The ANC believes that the political, economic and cultural survival of Southern Africa’s liberation legacy demands honest introspection, shared learning and actionable unity,” said the ANC.
Liberation movements played a vital role in transforming Southern Africa’s political landscape by resisting colonial and apartheid systems and advancing people-centred governance, said the ANC.
However, it warned that these historic gains are now under threat and require urgent and collective responses.
“By reaffirming shared values and strengthening alliances, the 2025 Liberation Movements Summit will chart a path forward, one that protects the gains of the past while building a just, inclusive and self-determined African future,” said the ANC.
In an interview with South African media yesterday, Zanu PF Director for Information and Publicity Cde Farai Marapira said the movements had, for decades, been connected to the needs of the African people.
While political liberation was achieved, the focus was now on creating sound economic and living conditions for the people.
Cde Marapira said the diverse economic landscapes of the countries taking part at the summit would help come up with resolutions that would benefit everyone.
“As Zanu PF, our issue at the present moment is the economy and ensuring that we keep on developing it in the leaps and strides which we are doing,” he said.
“We have a very vibrant steel sector which is going to revolutionise most of the economies with us as Sadc in the ensuing months and years and this will become more and more prevalent.
“These are some of the issues we are looking at, that we are now in charge of our economy as Zimbabwe, we are developing our economy.”
Cde Marapira said all major sectors such as agriculture and mining, were improving yearly, with emphasis now on developing the manufacturing sector, ensuring that minerals and crops were not sold as raw materials, but finished products.
“This is what we are looking at as Zanu PF, an exciting period of our life as a political party because we are now moving from strength to strength under the leadership of President Mnangagwa towards attaining the goals and aspirations of our people, brick by brick,” he said.
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