Foreign Affairs official Mandizha dies

HARARE – A senior official in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Mr Leonard Mandizha has died. He was 56. Mr Mandizha, a principal administrative officer in the ministry, died on Friday at Dandaro Clinic in Borrowdale.

Mourners are gathered at No. 1 Barrington Road, Hopley. Burial arrangements are yet to be announced. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent a condolence message to the Mandizha family.

“The Minister of Foreign Affairs Honourable Simbarashe Mumbengegwi, Deputy Minister Honourable Rabson Makhula, the secretary for foreign affairs Ambassador Joey Bimha and the entire staff wish to convey heartfelt condolences to Mrs Mwaemurei Mandizha on the untimely death of a dear colleague Mr Leonard Mandizha,” read part of the statement.

Mr Mandizha was born in Makoni, Rusape, on August 6, 1957. He attended Hartzell High School for Ordinary and Advanced Level before proceeding to the University of Rhodesia for a Science General degree.

He abandoned his studies in 1978 to join the liberation struggle in Mozambique. Mr Mandizha trained as a Zanla combatant at Tembwe and Tete. He also worked in the commissariat department in Maputo where he was involved in the publication of the “Zimbabwe News”.

After Independence, he joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and was posted to the Zimbabwe Embassy in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania for three years. He was posted to the Embassy of Zimbabwe in Havana, Cuba for five years and to the Embassy of Zimbabwe in Brussels for another seven years.

At the time of his death, he was attached to the Multilateral Affairs Directorate. He is survived by his wife Mwaemurei. The Herald