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Herald Reporter

THE New Parliament Building in Mt Hampden is expected to be complete in March next year, a Cabinet Minister said yesterday after a tour of the multi-million-dollar project.

High-ranking Government officials including Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi; Local Government and Public Works Minister July Moyo and the Deputy Minister of Finance and Economic Development Clemence Chiduwa visited the project site for an assessment of the imposing building.

Minister Ziyambi said the high-powered delegation toured the project to assess progress and to engage the contractor over the time frame within which the construction would be complete.

“The contractor assured us that by March next year, the building will be complete and once that is done we expect all parliament business to move to the more spacious building,” he said.

“Now that we have been informed when the construction is going to be complete, it will give us sufficient time to make preparations for the official opening of the New Parliament Building.”

Minister Ziyambi said the next Budget presentation would be done at the new Parliament which can accommodate far more legislators.

He added that project was in sync with the aspirations of the country’s economic blueprint, the National Development Strategy 1 which recognises infrastructure development as a key economic enabler.

Deputy Minister Chiduwa said the NDS1 thrust included infrastructure development and the project resonated with the State’s agenda of infrastructure as a key economic enabler.

The six storey Parliament building will house the upper Senate chamber and the Lower House of Assembly as well as a multi-purpose gallery and offices.

The project is being funded by the Chinese Government through China Aid in support of Zimbabwe’s infrastructure development thrust.