The ruling ZANU-PF party has approved the appointment of businessman Paul Tungwarara to its Central Committee in what party officials describe as a move aimed at injecting fresh ideas into its leadership.
Announcing the decision after Politburo deliberations, ZANU-PF Secretary for Information and Publicity Christopher Mutsvangwa said Tungwarara’s selection by Manicaland province had received formal endorsement from the party’s top decision-making body.
“We had deliberations on the issue of Manicaland’s selection of Comrade Paul Tungwarara as a member of the Central Committee and I’m glad to announce that he has now been accepted,” Mutsvangwa said.
He congratulated both Tungwarara and the Manicaland provincial leadership noting that the appointment follows a similar nomination by Harare province of businessman Kudakwashe Tagwireyi to the same governing structure.
Mutsvangwa described the appointments as part of a broader effort to bring younger business leaders into party structures, saying their participation would help shape economic thinking within ZANU-PF.
“This is an injection of new blood into the party, young business people who have fresh ideas about how to generate wealth for the country and how to run the economy,” he said.
According to the party, the inclusion of private-sector figures is intended to align ZANU-PF with emerging global economic trends linked to technological innovation and industrial transformation.
Mutsvangwa said exposure to international business environments would help the party adapt to what he termed the demands of a modern “fourth industrial revolution”, citing areas such as artificial intelligence, robotics and the digital economy.
The ruling party, which has governed Zimbabwe since independence in 1980 says it is seeking to remain politically relevant by opening leadership structures to new constituencies particularly entrepreneurs and younger professionals.
“We don’t want an ossified party. We want a party which is always open to new ideas,” Mutsvangwa said.
He added that ZANU-PF aims to encourage more young people and business leaders to identify with the party arguing that inclusivity has sustained its political dominance for decades.
“This is the clarion call of the membership to let a thousand ideas thrive and ensure everyone feels they can be part of the ZANU-PF community,” he said.
