Today, 2 October 2024, the President officially opened the Second Session of the Tenth Parliament of Zimbabwe. The President addressed a joint sitting of Senators and Members of the National Assembly at the Parliament building, Mount Hampden, and:
- delivered a State of the Nation Address and
- set out the Government’s legislative agenda for the Second session of the Tenth Parliament.
Thereafter, both Houses adjourned until Tuesday, 8th October 2024, when the business of the Second Session of the Tenth Parliament will begin.
Legislative Agenda
In his address, the President announced a list of 26 pieces of legislation that his Government intends to table before the Tenth Parliament in its Second Session. Included on the list are the following nine Bills currently at various stages of the law-making process in Parliament:
- Persons with Disabilities Bill
- Administration of Estates Amendment Bill
- Civil Aviation Amendment Bill
- Death Penalty Abolition Bill
- Parks and Wildlife Amendment Bill
- Private Voluntary Organisations Amendment Bill
- Mines and Minerals Bill
- Medical Services Bill
- Insurance and Pensions Commission Bill
The President requested Parliament to expedite the consideration of these outstanding bills. As such, we anticipate that the Bills will be restored to the Order Paper of the Second Session at the stage they were when the First Session ended.
The President also listed the following bills on the legislative agenda:
- Zimbabwe Schools Examination Council (ZIMSEC) Bill
- Teaching Professions Council Bill
- Occupational Safety and Health Bill
- State Services Pension Bill
- Public Service Amendment Bill
- Rural Electrification Fund Amendment Bill
- Public Entities Corporate Governance Amendment Bill
- Pipelines Amendment Bill
- Legal Practitioners Amendment Bill
- Public Interest Disclosure Protection of Whistleblowers Bill
- Electronic Transactions and Electronic Commerce Bill
- Standards Bill
- Legal Meteorology Bill
- Broadcasting Services Amendment Bill
- Media Practitioners Bill
- Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty domestication bill
- Biological Warfare bill
In his address, the President castigated Ministries and Ministers for failing to table before Parliament bills from his legislative agenda of the First Session. He also challenged Portfolio Committees to be seized with bills falling under their purview to expedite their enactment.
Thoughts on the Legislative Agenda
The number of Bills the President set out for the Second Session of the Tenth Parliament is far less than the 55 Bills he listed when he opened the First Session of the Tenth Parliament. However, given the pace at which the legislative agenda has been dispensed with over the years, it is highly unlikely that the Second Session will deliver on the President’s wish list despite his comments about expediting the enactment of Bills. Of the 55 Bills the President announced when he opened the First Session of the Ninth Parliament, only 10 Bills[1] were tabled before Parliament. Of those 10 Bills, only the Criminal Laws Amendment (Protection of Children and Young Persons) Act, 2024 was enacted as Act 1 of 2024.
The start of the Second Session of the Tenth Parliament coincides with the national budget season. During the national budget season, the legislative agenda is often stagnant as Parliament concentrates on passing the national budget. This puts paid to any belief that there will be a significant movement of the passage of Bills before the national budget is passed.
[1] Excluding the budget Bills that are not included on the legislative agenda and the Death Penalty Abolition Bill which started as a Private Member’s Bill.
