WEEKLY NEWS ROUND-UP

Monday

Treasury will procure more than 1 000 buses in the next two years, with 250 of them being available in the first quarter of next year, as Government moves with speed to improve the country’s public transport system.

This comes as Treasury has provided an additional $160 billion to ministries and departments in the 2024 National Budget to improve service delivery.

Tuesday President Mnangagwa has directed that best-performing local authorities and council officials be given awards starting next year at a ceremony he will preside over to ensure there is improved service delivery, a Cabinet minister revealed yesterday.

Service delivery is a matter President Mnangagwa is seized with after he recently launched a blueprint titled ‘‘A Call to Action, No Compromise on Service Delivery”, which will result in him chairing a bi-annual meeting of all councils to ensure service delivery improves.

Wednesday

Eight women and several youths were among 30 drug dealers and peddlers convicted and jailed for dealing in dangerous drugs recently.

The drugs they were found in possession of ranged from cocaine, crystal meth and mbanje, to illicit cough syrups.

Thursday

Zesa Holdings and Dinson Holdings, which is developing a multi-million-dollar iron and steel plant at Manhize near Mvuma, yesterday signed a tariff agreement that will see the power utility supplying subsidised electricity in return for the construction of three renewable energy plants by the iron and steel company.

The tariff agreement was signed by

Zesa executive chairman Dr Sydney Gata and Dinson chairman Mr Chen Shangson.

Friday

After a hectic year where he commissioned more than 30 high-impact projects, campaigned and won an election resoundingly, President Mnangagwa is now officially on a month-long leave, which he will spend in the country.

However, it is not all holiday for the President as he will be at hand to attend to official engagements where need arises, the Deputy Chief Secretary (Presidential Communications), Mr George Charamba, announced in a statement yesterday.