THE State of the Nation Address (SONA) by President Robert Mugabe was timely and poignant in many ways.
It was the tonic needed to stimulate the much needed economic growth that the country has been clamouring for.
While there is no doubt that the economy has been stuttering since the beginning of the year, the remedial measures proposed by President Mugabe are just what the doctor ordered.
The SONA not only covered all sectors of the economy but provided the ingredients needed to spur growth.
For instance, the promotion of local content, especially in agro-processing, mining, manufacturing, construction and tourism form the anchor and the basis from which our economy stands on.
What does this mean for Zimbabweans now that its all systems go for the anticipated economic take-off?
It means hard work.
It means commitment and dedication to the cause of our country.
And significantly, it means patriotism and honesty.
Time and again Zimbabweans have proven their mettle when it comes to serving their country.
We have proven that we have what it takes to make this country tick.
We have proven that as a united people we can take this country to unprecedented levels of development.
We have proven that we are armed with the qualities that build strong pillars of development.
Our resilience has made us a global marvel.
Our hard work has made us attractive to many across the world.
Our skills capacity have made us a highly marketable human capital.
But these attributes alone are not enough if not supported by systems and structures required to build a sound and solid economy.
Equally compelling is the fact that we need to use these qualities and attributes within our own economy before we export them.
This is why President Mugabe’s SONA must be embraced by all progressive Zimbabweans.
A conducive environment for economic growth has been created and all that is needed is for us to take advantage of these conditions to boost economic revival.
We need to converge, as a country, around the SONA’s major objective which is to increase local capacity, creating a skilled workforce and becoming a competitive supplier base.
The above three are what have made other modern economies thrive.
Economies like Kenya and Tanzania are anchoring their growth and development on providing services, with mining and agriculture in tow.
Already a platform to achieve this has already been laid through the recently gazetted Statutory Instrument (SI64) of 2016 which was created to protect and promote the local manufacturing industry.
Visible results are being witnessed, with capacity utilisation now at 40 percent.
In the same vein, accelerated implementation of policy reforms in revitalising agriculture, infrastructure development, unlocking the potential of small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) and encouraging private sector investments, among other issues, are key to achieving economic growth.
As President Mugabe noted during his SONA presentation, observance of zero tolerance to corruption is the pillar to realising that milestone.
Our path towards achieving that is clear and we are well on course to making it possible.
Sectors like mining from which small-scale miners have stood tall have made significant contributions to the building of the gold bullion.
The tourism sector, as President Mugabe highlighted in his well received presentation, is also vital in the country’s economic turnaround efforts.
There are many mitigatory measures that need to be adopted in order for the country to curb the rampant effects of climate change.
There is need for local experts to develop drought resistant seed varieties as well as create new irrigation technology to cushion the country from recurrent droughts.
Already, this farming season has started on a good note with above to normal rains being received throughout the country.
What this means is, Command Agriculture can play a significant role in providing food security.
We have to embrace SONA in order for us to rejuvenate the national economy and contribute to poverty reduction.