Oct 24, 2018: Zambia and Zimbabwe have signed four agreements following the conclusion of the 17th Joint Permanent Commission in Lusaka recently. The two sister republics moved to elevate and deepen their historical and economic relations. Zimbabwe president Emmerson Mnangagwa and Zambia president Edgar Chagwa Lungu oversaw the signing ceremony at the Zambian State House.

The first agreement signed by Zimbabwe’s minister of industry and commerce Mangaliso Ndlovu and his Zambian counterpart Christopher Yaruma pertains to the one stop border post at Victoria Falls in Livingstone to ease and expedite the movement of goods and services and facilitate trade in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region and the free trade area.

The second signing was a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on cooperation on the preservation of war graves and construction of monuments and museums. This was signed by Zimbabwe’s minister of home affairs Cain Matema and Zambia’s minister of tourism and arts Charles Banda.

The two countries also signed a MoUs on cultural exchange, gender equality and women empowerment.