By Aldridge Dzvene
In a moment filled with reflection and national urgency, Zimbabwean lawmakers assembled beneath the grandeur of the New Parliament Building in Mt Hampden. But this time, it was not to debate, legislate, or interrogate policy in the usual rhythm of parliamentary business. It was to listen, to learn, and perhaps most importantly, to reflect on their role in making development real and visible in the lives of ordinary citizens.
The topic was weighty but urgent, the Sustainable Development Goals, Africa’s Agenda 2063, and Zimbabwe’s Vision 2030. Yet beyond the global declarations and national aspirations was a deeper message, that sustainable development must not remain theory, it must be felt where life is most raw, in the village school still waiting for desks, in the dry communal borehole, in the face of a girl who walks ten kilometers to school with no books in her satchel.
This gathering was less about policy rhetoric and more about awakening. It was a direct call to lawmakers to bring SDGs out of glossy reports and into grassroots action. To stop seeing these goals as distant UN artifacts and begin treating them as community survival tools.
Senator Annah Shiri, who represents persons with disabilities, spoke with conviction. “For us, the session was an eye-opener,” she said. “I represent people with special needs, and this will enable me to carry their needs from communities to Parliament.” Her remarks offered a necessary reminder, that development without inclusion is simply exclusion by design.
From education to health, from water to livelihoods, MPs reflected on the broad landscape of challenges and the critical role of legislation in bridging policy with reality. Zaka North legislator, Honourable Ophias Murambiwa, noted visible progress but warned against complacency. “We are happy that our government is leading in implementing these goals,” he said. “In education, there are several initiatives in place. But the real task lies in ensuring these initiatives reach the most remote learners.”
Honourable Senator Chief Nkatazo Siansali, Chairperson of the Thematic Committee on SDGs, brought the focus back to implementation. “It is important that we continue such engagements so that Members of Parliament fully understand how to carry SDGs into their communities.” His words underlined a critical reality, that the success of these goals will not be measured in budget lines but in how they touch lives.
For Honourable Chenjerai Kangausaru of Hurungwe East, the message was simple and sincere. “We are going to implement what we have learnt today for the benefit of our communities. We are here because of them.” That statement alone cut through the usual layers of political messaging, revealing a desire to reconnect national policy with its human foundations.
Mrs Sylocoius Chaturuka, Director for SDGs and Agenda 2063 in the Ministry of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare, highlighted why lawmakers must become the first advocates. “Parliamentarians are closest to the people. They operate at community level, where real transformation must occur. We want them to ensure that these goals are fully integrated into the Mid-Term Development Strategy.”
Kennedy Chokuda, Clerk of Parliament, echoed that expectation. “Our hope is that Members of Parliament do not stop at knowledge, but move to action.” It was a statement less of ambition than of accountability, a reminder that inaction is no longer an option in the decade of delivery.
This sensitisation session took place against the backdrop of various ongoing government interventions, from school construction to clean water provision and food distribution. These efforts, though commendable, must now be accelerated, monitored, and embedded in local realities through a robust link between Parliament and the people.
Zimbabwe’s Vision 2030 is only meaningful if it translates into visible, measurable, and dignified progress in people’s daily lives. That progress will not come from Parliament sitting above the people, but beside them, among them, walking with them.
This session at Mt Hampden may not have made news headlines, but it carried the kind of quiet power that moves nations. When lawmakers begin to see themselves not only as policy custodians but as transformation agents, the Sustainable Development Goals cease to be distant checklists, and instead become promises delivered.
In that chamber of learning and responsibility, something essential was reignited, the realisation that leadership is not about leading from the top, but rising with the people.
