Jaishankar wishes Zimbabwe on its 42nd independence day
Apr 18, 2022
New Delhi [India], April 18 : External Affairs Minister Dr. S Jaishankar congratulated his Zimbabwean counterpart Frederick MM Shava and the country's people on the commemoration of its 42nd Independence Day on Sunday (Local time).
Formerly known as Rhodesia, the southern African country gained independence as Zimbabwe on April 18, 1980 from Britain.
Taking to Twitter, Jaishankar wrote, "Congratulate FM @ShavaHon and the Government and people of Zimbabwe on their Independence Day. Will continue our endeavors to strengthen our strong bonds of friendship."
India and Zimbabwe have a long history of close and cordial relations. Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan had a virtual meeting with Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Dr. Frederick Shava, on 28 June 2021.
The Ministers reviewed the entire gamut of the bilateral relationship, including political cooperation, cooperation in the fields of health, energy, trade, investments, and multilateral fora.
India gifted 10 ambulances, which had been promised during the visit of the Vice President to Zimbabwe in 2018. A consignment of 35,000 Covaxin vaccine doses was also provided in the month of March 2021. India also handed over three vehicles for the Indo-Zim Technology Centres, for which the latest technology machines are worth approx. USD 3 million have been supplied under Phase II.
The cooperation continued in the multilateral arena too. During the year 2021-2022, India contributed USD 1 million through the India UN Development Partnership Fund for climate-resilient agriculture in the districts of Chiredzi and Mangwe, which is expected to benefit over 5000 small farmers.