President Emmerson Mnangagwa has concluded his three-day State visit to Malawi, with the two heads of state describing the state visit as a huge success.

It has been a busy three days for the two heads of state from the time President Mnangagwa arrived in Lilongwe on Wednesday.

The three days were comprised of not just business meetings, but visits to significant places like the Mausoleum where the remains of former Malawian President Dr Hastings Kamuzu Banda are interred as well as the Malawi Parliament.

The two Presidents rounded up the visit in Blantyre where they issued a joint media briefing at Sanjika Palace.

President Chakwera expressed his joy for the successful state visit.

“Words are insufficient to express the joy I feel during this visit. In the 3 days, he has been to 4 regions of our country… He did all. This in a short space of time.”

On his part, President Mnangagwa expressed his gratitude for the warm welcome.

He took the opportunity to remind African citizens of their responsibilities to build their economies.

“It is a mistake to admire nations built by their own people. You must build yours,” he said.

Earlier, President Mnangagwa visited Mount Soche, one of the areas affected by Cyclone Freddy in Malawi’s city of Blantyre.

The President handed over a consignment of goods to the affected people and highlighted the strong bond developing between the two countries and the spirit of Ubuntu.

Having spent the first two days of his visit in Lilongwe, this Friday President Mnangagwa went to Blantyre and his first port of call was Mount Soche where over 200 people lost their lives during Cyclone Freddy.

President Lazarus Chakwera showed him the areas that were hit by the cyclone at the foot of Mount Soche.

Some in the area are currently housed in makeshift houses.

After viewing the damage, President Mnangagwa handed over a consignment of goods to assist those affected by the cyclone.

The goods included cement, groceries and kitchen utensils amongst other basic necessities.

President Mnangagwa said the region needs to do more to mitigate the effects of climate change and said as Zimbabwe they hope Malawi can restore what was damaged and return to their way of life.

“I managed to see Mount Soche where huge rocks fell during the cyclone. I was saying to my brother these incidents continue to affect us due to climate change. We were affected by Idai, but it was not as severe as Freddy. We need to look for strategies to deal with these disasters.”

President Mnangagwa said in bad and good times, African nations will stand together.

President Chakwera says Malawi will be forever grateful for this unprecedented level of support in their time of need in Zimbabwe.

“Let me express my deep gratitude from the people of Malawi to President Mnangagwa. This level of generosity is unmatched,” he said.

From Soche, President Mnangagwa and his counterpart visited the Mboma tea factory.

Zimbabwe and Malawi are seeking to increase trade.- ZBC News