Story by Albert Chekayi
India has pledged to continue supporting the people of Zimbabwe in the field of pharmaceuticals, energy and skills development as well as also offering help in times of natural disasters such as the current drought induced by the El Nino phenomenon.
The pledge was made by the Indian Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Mr. Bramha Kumar at a ceremony held at the Embassy to welcome Zimbabweans who are going to India and others who have returned after successfully completing various courses under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) scholarship programmes.
The programme, which started in 1964 is the brainchild of India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru under the South to South Cooperation vision.
“I understand that Zimbabwe has a tough time due to El Nino effected severe drought. This year again, 1000 metric tonnes of rice is being delivered from India to ease pressure on the Government of Zimbabwe on the food security front. Earlier also India extended a grant of US$1 million and announced aid of 500 tonnes of rice to the Government of Zimbabwe on the 4th of August 2016, in response to the international appeal made by Zimbabwe in the wake of national drought disaster,” said Ambassador Kumar, who recently took office in Zimbabwe replacing outgoing Diplomat Ambassador Vijay Kanduja.
In the 2016 to 2017 season, Zimbabwe was affected by floods and India extended a grant of US$1 million. India also donated 1000 metric tonnes of rice to Zimbabwe in 2020 as well as US$2.2 million worth of emergency medicines.
“India appreciates Zimbabwe for being the first country in Africa to give authorisation for use of Covaxin, a vaccine produced in India during the time of the Covid-19 pandemic. India donated 75 000 doses of Covaxin vaccines in two tranches in March and December 2021,” said Ambassador Kumar.
India and Zimbabwe share friendly and active bilateral relations covering many sectors including skill training and capacity building including technical assistance and Ambassador Kumar added, “I would like to share of the recent examples of our bilateral cooperation in this field. Our agencies have successfully completed and commissioned the Deka Pumping and River Water intake System which has been developed with an Indian LOC of US$48.1 million. India looks forward to partaking in further developments of Zimbabwe’s energy sector.”
The returning Zimbabwean students spoke highly of the quality of training they received in India in their different fields.
In the field of science, India is home to the Genome Valley a high-technology business district in the city of Hyderabad.
The Genome Valley concept is the result of Dr. Krishna Ella’s vision. Dr Ella is also founder of the Bharat Biotech.
In the past five years 56 Zimbabweans obtained scholarships for post graduate and PHD courses in various fields at Indian universities.
