New UK Ambassador to Zimbabwe targets trade, energy and commonwealth return

BRITAIN’S new Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Gillian Joanna Lever, says her priorities include strengthening trade and investment, advancing opportunities for women and girls and deepening people-to-people ties between the two countries.

Lever was speaking Thursday after presenting her credentials to President Emmerson Mnangagwa at State House in Harare, where the two discussed bilateral relations.

She described relations between the two countries as a modern respectful partnership and said she wanted to strengthen cooperation across several areas.

“The President and I discussed bilateral relationships, we talked about the modern respectful partnership we have between the UK and Zimbabwe, and I set out my priorities, which are trade and investment, women and girls. I think it’s very important that we try to advance opportunities for women and girls, and that we look to build the living bridge between our two countries, which is connecting our people through endeavours such as theirs in Zimbabwe, they’ve done now the direct flight, and growing those people-to-people links,” she said.

On economic cooperation, the ambassador pointed to ongoing investment initiatives, including a solar power project in the Midlands that she said was worth more than £50 million and was intended to help address Zimbabwe’s energy needs.

“We’re also looking at a solar power project called Vungo, which is in the Midlands, again over £50 million worth of investment to try and improve energy needs for Zimbabwe,” she said.

Lever also referenced a US$50 million financing deal announced last month by British International Investment to support farmers and entrepreneurs.

The ambassador also addressed Zimbabwe’s prospects of rejoining the Commonwealth, saying the decision would not rest with Britain alone.

She said the process would depend on the organisation’s wider membership and a recommendation from its secretary-general.

“We’re into the Commonwealth when the time is right, obviously it’s not just a decision for the United Kingdom, it’s a decision for the Commonwealth membership, based on a recommendation from the secretary-general,” Lever said.

Mnangagwa’s administration has been for years trying to rejoin the Commonwealth after Zimbabwe withdrew in 2003 amid disputes over governance and human rights, but readmission depends on the organisation’s member states.

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