HARARE — President Emmerson Mnangagwa has implemented a cabinet reshuffle that has resulted in the splitting of the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Water, Fisheries and Rural Development into two separate portfolios, effective immediately.
Under the changes, Vangelis Haritatos has been appointed Minister of Lands and Rural Development, marking his promotion from Deputy Minister in the former combined ministry. Anxious Masuka remains responsible for the agriculture portfolio, which has been reconstituted as the Ministry of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Water Resources Development.
The announcement was made through an official statement from the Office of the President and Cabinet, signed by Chief Secretary Martin Rushwaya, confirming that the restructuring was carried out in terms of Section 104(1) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe.
The statement read in part that, following a review of the combined ministry, the President had approved its division into two distinct portfolios, with Haritatos appointed to head Lands and Rural Development, while Masuka continues to lead Agriculture, Mechanisation and Water Resources Development, with both appointments taking effect immediately.
The restructuring effectively separates land administration and rural development functions from agricultural production and water resource management, in what is being viewed as a strategic reorganisation of a key economic sector.
In a parallel development, Mnangagwa has dismissed Central Intelligence Organisation Director-General Fulton Mangwanya and appointed veteran diplomat Paul Chikawa as his replacement. Chikawa previously served as Zimbabwe’s ambassador to Cuba.
The changes also coincide with developments affecting governance and oversight institutions, including the removal of Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission chairperson Jessie Majome, following concerns raised by the commission over alleged intimidation during public hearings on Constitutional Amendment Bill No. 3.
The latest reshuffle forms part of a broader series of executive adjustments under Mnangagwa’s administration, amid ongoing debates around constitutional reform and the independence of state institutions.
