Staff Reporter
Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Ambassador Fredrick Shava formally inaugurated the Board of Governors for the Zimbabwe Foreign Service Institute (ZFSI), in Harare, yesterday.
The board comprises of seven members namely; Ambassador Margaret Muchada, Bernard Musariranwa, Simon Nyakotyo, Ambassador Dr Andrew Mtetwa, Dr Major (Rtd) Anywhere Mutambudzi, Senia Nkala and Duduzile Shinya.
The board is chaired by Ambassador Muchada while Dr Mutambudzi deputizes him.
Speaking to this reporter today, Dr Mutambudzi said he was very confident that his academic qualifications and experience would add value to the ZFSI.
“I am a great communicator with unique presentation, and inter-personal skills. I have qualifications in communication studies, security studies and International Relations. I teach part time at Witwatersrand University in South Africa, I also teach security studies at the Defence University and R.G.M.S.I. With my academic credentials, I know I will be able to carry out my duties in a very amicable manner,” said Dr Mutambudzi.
The newly appointed Chairperson Ambassador Dr Muchada was once a Deputy Chairperson of Public Service Commission since June 2014 and he took over as Acting Chairperson of the Commission after the retirement of Dr Mariyawanda Nzuwah in 2018.
In 2000 Ambassador Muchada was appointed as Zimbabwe`s Ambassador to Italy and Permanent Representative to the United Nations Organizations in Rome before being appointed Ambassador to Belgium.
Meanwhile, Dr Andrew Mtetwa is also a retired diplomat and academic who retired from Zimbabwe`s foreign service in 2014. He is a former Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade and former Ambassador of Zimbabwe to Belgium, South Africa and Zambia. Same is currently a Senior Lecturer at the Zimbabwe National Defence University.
In January 2022, Ambassador Mtetwa was appointed to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Panel of Elders and Mediation Reference Group.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa established the ZFSI through Proclamation 2 of 2020 contained in Statutory Instrument 151 of 2020. The ZFSI board is essential as it comes at a time when the Government has prioritized engagement and re-engagement in its foreign policy, while promoting economic diplomacy to fulfill targets set under Vision 2030.
