ADDRESS
BY
THE PRESIDENT AND CHANCELLOR,
HIS EXCELLENCY, DR. E. D. MNANGAGWA
AT
THE COMMISSIONING OF THE UNIVERSITY
OF ZIMBABWE INDUSTRIAL INCUBATION
CENTRE AND SPECIALIST MEDICAL CENTRE
UNIVERSITY OF ZIMBABWE DIAMOND
CONFERENCE CENTRE
27 JULY 2026
Director of Ceremonies, Prof. F. Tagwira;
Vice President, Hon. Gen. (Rtd) Dr.C.G. D. N. Chiwenga;
Vice President, Hon. Col. (Rtd) Dr. K. C. D. Mohadi;
Chairman of ZANU PF and Minister of Defence,
Hon. O. C. Z. Muchinguri-Kashiri;
Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation,
Science and Technology Development,
Hon. Dr. F. M. M. Shava;
Minister of Health and Child Care,
Hon. Dr. D. Mombeshora;
Vice Chancellor of the University of Zimbabwe, our host today, Prof. P. Mapfumo;
Honourable Ministers;
Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet,
Dr. M. Rushwaya;
Senior Government Officials;
Chairman of the University of Zimbabwe Council,
Mr. D. Hoto and Council Members;
Ladies and Gentlemen;
Comrades and Friends.
It is my distinct honour and privilege to officially commission two signature developments emerging from the University of Zimbabwe, which are the Industrial Incubation Centre and Specialist Medical Centre. Such projects validate the success of the Heritage-based Education 5.0 Model that continues to position our higher and tertiary institutions as critical cogs in the ongoing industrialisation, modernisation and development of our economy. I, therefore, congratulate the University of Zimbabwe for realising yet another landmark achievement, and successfully completing the facilities being commissioned today. Makorokoto, Amhlophe.
The commissioning of the centres is coming after the hosting of the 7th Edition of the University of Zimbabwe Research Innovation and Industrialisation Week in May.
I commend the University for the high-level dialogues, public lectures, presentations, cutting-edge innovations as well as exhibitions showcased at the event.
This reflects the institution’s commitment to providing the requisite leadership in our country’s higher education space to drive national development. Well done.
The University of Zimbabwe’s Industrial Incubation Centre is a commendable initiative along the institution’s innovation pipeline. More so, that the Incubation Centre is the end point where Start-ups shall be developed towards commercialisation and market participation.
This is after ideas commence and are nurtured in the laboratories and workshops, moving through the Innovation Hub for prototyping, product development and Start-up registration.
It is impressive that the Start-up companies hosted in the Industrial Incubation Centre are student-led, resulting from their final year projects, research and scholarly work. Under my Administration, promising innovations will continue to be granted ‘Innovation Hub Status’ and supported by Government.
I am confident that this approach will provide impetus for our young talented students to develop their ideas into products, goods and services.
Last week, I officiated at the Zimbabwe’s Inaugural Industrialisation Conference, where it was highlighted that our country spends approximately US$2.5 billion on imports of manufactured goods, which could be made locally. There is scope in this regard for the student-led Start-up companies under institutions of higher learning to produce a wider range of products with direct bearing on the needs of our economy.
Judging from the crop of confident and innovative Executives of Start-up companies, our country is indeed on the right path of irreversible industrialisation and modernisation. I challenge the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Universities along with stakeholders in Industry including financial institutions, to scale up support for Start-Up companies emanating from the Heritage Based Education 5.0 Model.
Through the “Whole of Government and Society Approach” , let us continue to give our young talented boys and girls a chance to develop their ideas and exploit their full potential for the benefit of our beloved motherland, Zimbabwe.
It is encouraging, Vice Chancellor, Prof Mapfumo that we now celebrate the successful outcomes of eleven Start-up companies, resident at the Industrial Incubation Centre. Well done.
The University of Zimbabwe Industrial Incubation Centre must thus, not merely be a workspace for graduate innovators, but steadily evolve into an industrial production hub that supports manufacturing, technology development, value addition and enterprise growth.
To this end, our Small to Medium Enterprises and other established industries, should find value at the Industrial Incubation Centre, given the wide range of services offered at the facility.
Ladies and Gentlemen;
Today, I am also pleased to commission the University of Zimbabwe Specialist Medical Centre, which is part of the Quinary Hospital being constructed within the University of Zimbabwe’s Industrial Park.
The multi-disciplinary Specialist Medical Centre will provide oral and eye health, assisted reproduction using in-vitro fertilisation (IVF), and trauma services, among other features. Health services such as assisted reproduction have been only available in the private sector. This made the services out of reach and unaffordable for many of our people requiring the treatment in this area. Hence, the establishment of the Facility, with its specialists, high-end health care, dove- tail with my Administration’s core development principle that leaves no one, and no place behind.
I also congratulate the University of Zimbabwe for this project, which will not only enhance training, but also add to the critical numbers of the much- needed eye-specialist-doctors and dentists, as well as other health specialisations.
Through this project, the University of Zimbabwe has demonstrated that innovation is not just about creating new products, but also about revitalising and re-purposing existing infrastructure to best suit the current national realities, in service to our economy. The newly established Specialist Medical Centre further complements the ongoing Government’s Presidential Hospital Renovation and Modernisation Programme.
Going forward Vice Chancellor, it is my hope, that the Quinary Hospital currently under construction will soon be completed to augment the present reforms towards the modernisation of our national health delivery system and the realisation of Universal Health Coverage.
Meanwhile, I call upon the University, along with other upcoming health facilities, in both the public and private sectors, to deliberately ensure that new facilities are equipped with modern, state-of-the-art equipment that compares well, with others in developed jurisdictions.
All investments in the health sector should translate to improved health delivery and associated foreign currency retention, where our people travel less to other countries for health care.
The Ministry of Health and Child Care, together with related Agencies, are directed to remove the barriers of entry in the establishment of specialist health care facilities and services.
Hatidi ma gate-keepers, nema cartels mu health sector, vanhu vedu vachitadza kurapwa zvakanaka, nemutengo uripasi. Kwete. Ngative nehanya, tikoshese hutano we vanhu vekwedu.
My Government will not accept the prevalence of the opportunists and so-called health sector “cartels and syndicates”, who operate to the detriment of our people. Let those with ears hear this stern exhortation.
Ladies and Gentlemen;
Universities must play their part and take responsibility to build our country through research, science, innovation and technology. The exhibits and displays, I have always witnessed from the University Research-Innovation- Industrialisation Ecosystem, demonstrate unprecedented progress in repositioning our universities as solution-driven agents for the development of our beloved motherland, Zimbabwe.
The wide range of products and services, which cover the critical sectors of our economy, are a reflection that we can achieve Vision 2030 and build the Zimbabwe we all want, through our own capacity and skills. Nyika inovakwa, inotongwa, inonamatirwa nevene vayo. / Ilizwe lakhiwa, libuswe, likhu-le-ke-lwe ngabanikazi balo.
It is pleasing that in the fields of biotechnology and health, innovators are developing indigenous herbal formulations for medicines, vaccines, cosmetics and food, tapping into our rich biodiversity and cultural heritage. This focus should enable our country to move from exporting raw biological resources, towards value-added pharmaceutical and cosmetic manufacturing.
The smart agricultural equipment, solar-powered systems and drone technologies for precision agriculture, being developed by innovators speaks to the current agro-industrialisation thrust. It is my expectation that developments in this direction ultimately help farmers increase productivity, reduce post-harvest losses, optimise irrigation systems and modernise agricultural production systems.
On the mineral value addition and beneficiation front, my Government assigned our State Universities responsibilities to ensure that we achieve high-value outputs from our natural resource endowments.
The establishment of National Minerals Research Centre that facilitates the value addition of a variety of minerals, including lithium, rare earth elements and uranium, among others, is now urgent.
As Chancellor, I want to emphasise the importance of this strategic national assignment, which I require Universities to carry out with uttermost diligence, honesty and integrity, for the benefit of both present and future generations, in our motherland, Zimbabwe.
As I conclude, I reiterate that my Government remains committed to supporting the requisite ecosystem for the accelerated industrialisation, modernisation and sustainable development of our nation. Let us all continue to work with unity of purpose, in seamless synergy and through constructive engagement, for the overall national good, towards Vision 2030. The future of our motherland, Zimbabwe is bright.
With these remarks, it is now my singular honour and privilege to declare, the University of Zimbabwe Industrial Incubation Centre and Specialist Medical Centre officially commissioned. Congratulations,
Makorokoto, Amhlophe.
God bless you.
God bless Zimbabwe.
I thank you.