Building the Great Wall of Zim
Ilizwe lakhiwa ngabaninilo:
“WE have decided on value addition and beneficiation. We have decided on local value chains. We have decided on technology-aided transformation of our economy. All these make our economy one huge laboratory and innovation hub which cries out for all our creative citizens. As your President, I say, come back from wherever you had gone. I say come forward from whatever corner to which our inhospitable attitudes and policies had consigned you. There is now in a place in the sun for you, in your homeland. Imi nesu tava nebasa! The brick has to be moulded by you; the mortar has to be made again by you; both must now be used by you to erect the Great Wall of Zimbabwe! This is what nyika inovakwa nevene vayo/ ilizwe lakhiwa ngabaninilo, means.”
The above is a statement from last week’s weekly article by His Excellency, President Mnangagwa which is published in this paper and in our sister paper, The Sunday Mail. The statement sums up the deep philosophy that the President is sharing with the nation and the world at large. The statement, Nyika inovakwa nevene vayo/ ilizwe lakhiwa ngabaninilo is not just a slogan. It is a philosophy from which the Second Republic seeks to build the country with every citizen playing their role, no matter how big or small. And yet when it comes to nation building, there is no job either too big or too small, all what is required is every shoulder to the wheel.
The President has on several occasions made a clarion call to Zimbabweans to be inward looking in their search for solutions, as the country is blessed with both human capital and natural resources to transform everyone’s life for the better.
He has invited those in the Diaspora to invest back home and participate in the new economic trajectory. And many have responded to the call, with many sponsoring development projects in their villages of origin, as witnessed through a number of clinics built or refurbished in parts of Matabeleland South province in Bulilima, Mangwe, Beitbridge and Umzingwane, among other areas such as Tsholotsho (Matabeleland North) where people in the diaspora are building a school and providing equipment to a hospital. And many have invested in business, but more are still needed.
Furthermore, to bolster the nation’s philosophy, President Mnangagwa said our heritage studies must anchor the learner in our culture and ethos as Zimbabweans and as Africans.
“Through it, we must repair our broken personality and faith in ourselves as a people, so we take our rightful place in national development and in global affairs. Needless to say, a people lacking self-belief cannot be sovereign, or build a sovereign society. Our heritage which is symbolised in brick hewn out of hard granite rock, confirms us as a solid civilisation whose innovative cast is steeped in a proud past, and continues to speak across time. Great Zimbabwe and its sibling monuments stand and proclaim just that. The time has now come for us to summon and rally this creative urge ingrained in us by history and heritage. That urge has been lying dormant or crying out for expression, recognition and a home. Much worse, it has gone into self-exile, deserted its home to be embraced and nurtured by foreigners whose faraway societies it has prospered.”
The President last week invited scientists to turn the country into a laboratory, and promised them free land to set up structures for their innovations.
“The Second Republic must make a break with Zimbabwe’s shameful past of self-disdain. It must be about science; it must be about technology, about innovation, research and development. From a mere labouring race, we must now become a race in the laboratory and in innovation hubs. This is what Education 5.0 is about: anchoring our education in STI, or Science, Technology and Innovation,” he said.
The view by the President has been replicated elsewhere in the continent, with Ethiopia rallying its diaspora to champion economic development back home. In an online article, Professor Damtew Teferra writes that Ethiopia has a unique “model” of deploying its intellectual diaspora — academics, researchers and high-level professionals — by integrating their competence, experience, knowledge and networks with that of nationals to help resolve societal questions in their home country and advance knowledge-generation.
Professor Damtew Teferra says in 2018, the former Ministry of Science and Higher Education of Ethiopia (MOSHE), now subsumed under the Ministry of Education (MOE), established an advisory council with objectives and plans to help support its mission. The council was composed of (mostly) senior academics and researchers drawn from both inside the country and the diaspora outside, with expertise in an array of disciplines and fields.
“The MOSHE model was designed around a well-established value of ‘giving back to the country pro bono. This was fully embraced by both the diasporans and the national experts, motivated by appealing calls of the government, but particularly the MOSHE. The working groups, with 10-20 members covered a wide array of themes that MOSHE identified as important, among others, governance and leadership; quality; research; faculty and staff development; linkages, diaspora engagement and resource mobilisation. Some diaspora academics managed to bring a contingent of experts to the country to engage in conferences and doctoral seminars and explore opportunities for partnerships in graduate education and research.”
In 2011, the Zambian government also rallied its population in the diaspora to participate in the economic transformation back home. The then Commerce, Trade and Industry Minister, Robert Sichinga urged Zambians to discard reliance on the donor community, saying it was only Zambians that can develop their country. He added that the European Union (EU) and other cooperating partners “do not owe Zambians a living because in the final analysis, the responsibility for development fell on the shoulders of each and every Zambian.”
Furthermore, the success of the economic reforms in Tanzania in recent decades has been attributed to “a strong and “tested” sense of ownership of the reforms early in the process, a wide domestic consensus on economic reforms, and a broader understanding of the issues. This achievement resulted from a number of factors: a consultative and participatory approach, a series of “homegrown” programmes, sustained commitment and political leadership, and consistent support from development partners.”
Yudhi Dharma Nauly from Indonesia sums up the whole concept when he says:
“Basically, everyone plays distinctive role in progress and economic development of one’s country. People with more resources play more important roles, while others with less resources play less important roles. The value of each resource is determined by its contribution to the economy. Nevertheless, everyone contributes added values to the economy. Additionally, no one should be counterproductive and stand in the way. Subsequently, everyone should enhance the economic development by improving one’s contribution along the value chain. And eventually, with enhanced production as well as consumption, the economy would grow.”
The ball is in your court fellow Zimbabweans!