Rufaro Stadium roared with patriotic pride on 12 August 2025, as Zimbabwe marked the 45th anniversary of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces (ZDF), a celebration of unwavering loyalty, service, and resilience. President and Commander-in-Chief, Cde. Dr. Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa, alongside Defence Minister Hon. Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri, hailed the ZDF as the nation’s shield, a pillar of peace and security, and a driving force in building the empowered, prosperous Zimbabwe envisioned under Vision 2030.
This year’s commemorations, held under the theme “Zimbabwe Defence Forces: Guaranteeing Peace and Stability for the Attainment of Vision 2030”, honoured the gallant sons and daughters who protect Zimbabwe’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, and independence. It was a day that linked the heroism of ZANLA and ZIPRA liberation fighters to the modern, multi-skilled force that today responds to threats ranging from cybercrime and terrorism to climate disasters and drug abuse.
President Mnangagwa lauded the ZDF’s role beyond the battlefield, from rescuing flood victims in Gokwe, Domboshava, and Tokwe-Mukosi, to delivering grain to food-insecure communities, leading demining operations that have made Manicaland mine-free, and constructing schools, clinics, and rural infrastructure during the 2025 Community Assistance Week. Minister Muchinguri-Kashiri emphasised that these peacetime operations cement the “fish and water” bond between the People’s Army and the communities it serves.
The ZDF’s modernisation drive, leveraging research from the Zimbabwe National Defence University, has embraced cutting-edge technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, and the Internet of Things to keep pace with global defence trends. Under President Mnangagwa’s guidance, Zimbabwe Defence Industries is being revamped to ensure self-reliance, producing military consumables locally, contributing to national food security through Defence Force farms, and preparing to offer commercial construction services to the public.
Internationally, Zimbabwe’s soldiers fly the flag high in peacekeeping missions in South Sudan, the Central African Republic, the DRC, Ethiopia, and at UN Headquarters, while deepening defence ties with countries including China, Russia, India, South Africa, and Zambia, whose Defence Forces Select team joined the day’s commemorations for a symbolic football match. As SADC Chairperson, President Mnangagwa’s leadership in peace efforts, including the SADC–EAC mission in eastern DRC, reflects Zimbabwe’s Pan-African commitment to “silencing the guns” in line with the African Union’s Agenda 2063.
From improved housing and healthcare at Manyame Air Force Base to memorial monuments for liberation heroes like General Josiah Magama Tongogara in Mozambique and mass graves in Angola, the President reaffirmed that Zimbabwe’s defence legacy is not just preserved, but honoured and advanced.
With the rallying call “Nyika inovakwa, inotongwa, inonamatirwa nevene vayo / Ilizwe lakhiwa, libuswe, likhulekelwe ngabanikazi balo”, the 45th Zimbabwe Defence Forces Day was a resounding declaration that the ZDF remains a disciplined, trusted People’s Army, the shield of the nation and the engine propelling Zimbabwe towards Vision 2030.
