Staff Reporter
President Mnangagwa yesterday challenged the United Nations (UN) to institute programmes aimed at lifting the generality of the global citizenry out of poverty.
Addressing the 77th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York yesterday, President Mnangagwa said that lifting people out of poverty to better standards of life must be one of the core businesses of the UN.
“Lifting many more people out of poverty and into a higher quality of life must remain at the core of both UN activities and the programmes and projects of our respective countries. Zimbabwe has made significant strides towards ending poverty and hunger. This has seen the implementation of various policies and programmes to support and empower communal and small scale farmers,” said the President.
President Mnangagwa told UNGA that in its quest to lift people from poverty, the Zimbabwean Government has provided agricultural inputs, equipment and technical support to farmers, especially the vulnerable and this has contributed to household and national food and nutrition security in the country.
The President bemoaned the effects of climate change on food security and said that Zimbabwe was making concerted and deliberate efforts to integrate climate action into its national policies, strategies and planning. He said this included strengthening resilience and the adaptive capacity of the most vulnerable in our society.
President Mnangagwa further said that the Government was implementing an ambitious programme to increase the number of dams for irrigation. He said the programme was expected to create greenbelts across the country, and reduce dependence on rain-fed agricultural activities while enhancing export-led production and productivity.
The President added that economic reforms have been implemented resulting in significant progress in sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, mining and tourism.
According to President Mnangagwa, the “Zimbabwe is open for business” mantra has fostered strong partnership between the Government and the private sector for inclusive and sustainable development.
Meanwhile, President Mnangagwa challenged the UN to establish a global financial system which is just, more inclusive and responsive to the challenges faced by member states.
