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The following is a New Year message delivered by President Mnangagwa last night

My warmest greetings to all Zimbabweans at home and abroad.

As 2019 draws to a close and a New Year beckons, I thank you all for your immense contribution to the peace, harmony and development of our country.

Over the year, we have continuously displayed patriotism and concern for the welfare and well- being of each other.

Indeed, our strength lies in the unity and love for one another.

Our faith, goodness, perseverance and ability to rise above any difficulties as Zimbabweans, has brought us thus far.

As the year ends, we take time to reflect.

We embarked on 2019 with a shared vision to resuscitate and stabilise our economy.

We were determined to reform our socio-economic and political spheres.

A few months into the year, we sadly experienced the tragic loss of life and property as a result of Cyclone Idai.

The nation rallied together and friends stood with us.

This, plus a devastating drought in the preceding year, had a negative impact on our economy and caused hardships to our people.

We continue to pray for our dear departed compatriots and further seek to comfort and support survivors of this disaster.

The drought similarly restricted our potential to, guarantee food security for our people, sustain our livestock, generate adequate power and improve our healthcare.

We endured as a nation and rode the storm against all odds.

Painful as it is often the case, we must persevere through this rough but necessary patch on the road to growth and prosperity.

Going forward, 2020 will be the year of higher productivity, economic growth, job creation and satisfying the needs of the people.

We cannot live in the past, we can only learn from it.

We must craft a future, benefiting from the wisdom of the past.

Therefore, in this coming year, let us all shun violence.

Those that propagate violence must be exposed, condemned and rejected.

Let us declare that never again shall we lose the precious lives of our fellow countrymen, women and children, for the political or monetary expediency of a few.

The prosperity we so desire will be achieved only if we keep moving in unity and with purpose.

On its part, Government will continue to put in place measures to cushion the vulnerable members of our society in both rural and urban areas such as affordable transport, maize meal and other basic commodities, as well as healthcare.

The welfare of our public sector workers will also continue to qualitatively improve.

The fiscal discipline we have instilled under the Second Republic saw us rein in on the Budget deficit.

The new trend of Budget surpluses will continue and resources therefrom used to finance more public services such as healthcare facilities, schools, roads and related projects with a direct impact on the people’s well-being.

Resources towards devolution have been increased from the 2019 figure of ZWL720 million to about ZWL3 billion in 2020.

The onus is now on the various communities to accelerate the formulation and implementation of high impact projects which transform the lives of our people.

We must all ensure that our ongoing development drive leaves no one behind.

Let us all play our part.

In this new spirit of devolution, unity and national cohesion espoused by the Second Republic; we will, in 2020 and the years to follow, be holding our main national Independence Day commemorations in various parts of the country, away from our capital city, Harare.

Our Independence and freedom is for us all.

Meanwhile, our own currency the Zimbabwe dollar (ZWL), introduced during the last quarter of the year, must speedily take root.

There is no going back on mono-currency. Let us individually and collectively defend and protect it as our symbol of national pride and sovereignty.

The journey to entrench the democratic culture we have begun will be accelerated.

This is right, just and for the good of our people. Hence, the realignment of our laws to the Constitution must be completed.

As your Listening President and a Servant Leader, I will continue engaging with you and listening to your concerns so that we walk hand-in-hand, together in unity, love, peace and harmony towards a prosperous Zimbabwe.

There is indeed much more to look forward to in the New Year.

Tomorrow is a better and brighter day.

I wish you a happy and prosperous New Year.

God bless you all.

I thank you.