afrol News, 20 April

Efforts to get Zimbabwe a new constitution that speaks the same language as its people could be saved by the donation by the European Union to fund its draft.

The EU announced today it had given € 6 million (US$ 8.1 million) to the Southern African state to help fund a programme to draft a new constitution meant to pave the way for fresh elections.

The unity government in Zimbabwe, formed last year in February, has come across hectic hurdles, which some have been blamed on the quietness of the constitution.

Under the unity government deal, fresh elections can only be held once the new charter has been thoroughly reviewed by the Zimbabwean public and adopted as a national tool of unity through a referendum.

The unity government had recently said there was lack of financing for the constitutional review tour of the nation as well as consultations.

"In order for the project to move forward, we are therefore pleased to grant our approval to the first quarterly work plan which amounts to euro six million," Xavier Marchal, EU head of country delegation, said in a letter to Zimbabwean ministers.

He also said the EU has noted that the government of Zimbabwe has pledged its contribution toward the project to an amount of US$ 2,338,496.

Zimbabwe last went for general elections in 2008 when the opposition withdrew for the second round because of widespread violence and intimidation by the then sole ruling ZANU-PF party of Robert Mugabe.

Opposition leaders Morgan Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara however signed into the unity government deal, which has not really been able to make a break-through at government and political level, except that there is relative stability in Zimbabwe today and that the economy is recovering.