Skills Minister Urges Youth Leaders to Drive Economic Self Reliance

Shyline Majaji

Minister of Skills and Audit Hon. Dr Jenfan Muswere has called on young leaders to take responsibility for driving macroeconomic growth through efficient and sustainable project management.

Speaking at the CIPMZ 40 UNDER 40 Young Leaders programme, Dr Muswere said Zimbabwe must close the gap between invention and innovation, and between manufacturing and trade, to build a more resilient economy.

“The role of skills development in aligning national resources with knowledge based engineering,” Minister Muswere said.

Hon. Muswere told young Afro American leaders that economic self reliance depends on individual responsibility and effective management of national resources.

“The cohort must lead macroeconomic growth and to distinguish clearly between innovation and invention,” he said.

Dr Muswere also questioned how economies become dependent on external markets and called for stronger support for a stable currency.

“Celebrating the achievements of young Afro Americans must be matched by a commitment to lead and spearhead macroeconomic growth through efficient, sustainable project management modalities,” Hon. Muswere stated.

He argued that leadership requires moving beyond recognition to taking practical responsibility for national development outcomes.

According to the minister, sustainable growth depends on disciplined execution of projects that align with both domestic and international resource opportunities.

He positioned project management as a core tool for translating youth potential into measurable economic impact.

“As we celebrate the number of young Afro-Americans, this is the responsibility of individuals to be able to take the lead, to spearhead macroeconomic growth through efficient, sustainable project management modalities,” Dr Muswere said.

“As we celebrate today, we should always be cognizant of the fact that there is a distinctive difference between innovation and invention.”

The minister raised concern over the structural imbalance between manufacturing and trade, noting that many nations, including Zimbabwe, have become overly reliant on external economies.

He asked how the country arrived at a situation where its economy depends heavily on imports and external financial systems rather than domestic production.

Dr Muswere linked this dependency to weak industrial capacity and called for policies that reverse the trend. He said building local manufacturing capacity is essential for long term economic stability.

“There is a huge discrepancy between manufacturing and trade. How did nations end up in economies that are reliant on other external economies? How did we end up in that situation in our economy?” he said.

Dr Muswere said supporting a resilient currency is critical because it functions as the oil that runs the economy.

He pointed to recent discoveries in gas and oil as opportunities to develop powerful knowledge-based engineering capacity that can reduce external dependence.

“Aligning scholarships and training programs with national and international resources would strengthen the skills base needed for industrial growth, education and training be directly tied to sectors with strategic economic value,” he added.

The minister said the Ministry of Skills, Audit and Development has a mandate to continuously sharpen the country’s intellectual capacity to meet economic challenges.

“Skills audit and development programs must ensure that human capital is prepared to manage emerging sectors such as energy and advanced engineering,” he said.

According to Dr Muswere, strengthening intellectual capacity is not optional if Zimbabwe is to achieve sustainable and self driven growth.

“The Ministry of Skills, Audit and Development is tasked to ensure that we continue to sharpen our intellectual capacity,” Dr Muswere said.

Dr Muswere’s address at the CIPMZ 40 UNDER 40 Young Leaders programme framed youth leadership as central to Zimbabwe’s economic transformation.

By linking skills development, industrial policy and currency stability, he outlined a roadmap for reducing external dependence.