US Congress team visits Zimbabwe
Staff reporter
Wed, 17 Feb 2010 00:17:00 +0000
A FIVE-MEMBER congressional delegation of the U.S. House of Representatives will visit Zimbabwe this week "to assess progress in the implementation of the Global Political Agreement".
A statement issued by the US embassy in Harare says the team will also assess "economic reforms and visit U.S. funded humanitarian assistance projects". The delegation is led by Democratic Representatives Gregory Meeks and Melvin Watt, who represent New York and North Carolina,respectively.
The team plans to meet with senior government officials from the main political parties and leaders from non-governmental organizations.
Other members of the delegation include Democratic representatives André Carson of Indiana and Republican's Jack Kingston of Georgia.
This is the second visit to Zimbabwe in six months for Congressmen Meeks, Watt and Kingston.
In September 2009, Congressman Meeks led a five-member delegation that met with President Robert Mugabe, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, Speaker of the House of Assembly Lovemore Moyo and the tri-partite chairs of the Parliamentary Select Committee on the Constitution.
Labels: DELEGATIONS, GREGORY MEEKS, ZIMBABWE
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US lawmakers supportive of inclusive Government
Ralph Mutema
Thu, 03 Sep 2009 18:13:00 +0000
THE largest delegation of U.S. lawmakers to visit Zimbabwe in a decade has completed a visit to Zimbabwe and said they are supportive of the inclusive Government formed by President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai.
The delegation concluded a two-day visit Thursday to monitor the progress of the inclusive Government formed in February. The visit included meetings with President Robert Mugabe and other senior government leaders, including Prime Minister Tsvangirai.
The delegation included Gregory Meeks (D-New York), Jack Kingston (R-Georgia), Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas), Melvin Watt (D-North Carolina) and Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio). The Obama administration, unlike Bush administration, has thrown support behind the inclusive Government.
Meeks said: “Our support for the Zimbabwean people cannot be questioned. U.S. direct assistance to the Zimbabwean people exceeded $310 million, primarily food aid, non-food emergency assistance, health assistance, and democracy building support this year. We have always stood ready to help the Zimbabwean people.”
Meeks said only the inclsuive Government had a "reasonable prospect of delivering benefits to the Zimbabwean people."
Labels: GREGORY MEEKS, NATIONAL UNITY GOVERNMENT, SHEILA JACKSON-LEE
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