Zimbabwe one step closer to rejoining Commonwealth

Zimbabwe's re-engagement efforts continue to bear fruit with the country now on course to rejoin the Commonwealth. The country is now in the second stage of the application process. In May 2018, President Emmerson Mnangagwa wrote to the Commonwealth secretary-general Patricia Scotland expressing a willingness to return to the group after nearly two decades. The Herald reports that the Commonwealth, a voluntary association of 54 independent and equal countries then initiated a four-step process to assess Zimbabwe's suitability to regain its membership. ‘Commonwealth decisions are based on consensus and by that nature, every member is entitled to a say on the case of Zimbabwe,’ said Foreign Affairs spokesperson Constance Chemwayi. The recent endorsement by the respected Mo Ibrahim Index of African Governance, which ranked Zimbabwe among the five most improved nations over the past decade, is a clear testimony that the country's reforms are being undertaken seriously.

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