A South African ministerial delegation is expected to visit Zimbabwe early next month to brief their Zimbabwean counterparts on what kind of assistance they require ahead of the 2010 World Cup tournament.

This follows a call by Pres Jacob Zuma, whose delegation visited the neighbouring country in December, regarding co-operation to maximise the benefits accruing from the showcase.

Zimbabwe’s Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister, Walter Mzembi, said the team would update government on their preparations. The team will then prepare a briefing on areas where the two countries can work together. He said since the tournament had been declared a continental extravaganza, it was imperative that all countries in the region and the continent work together for its success.

“The tournament has moved from becoming a mere football extravaganza, to an opportunity for the region and the continent to showcase itself to the world. As a result, the South African Cabinet Taskforce on 2010 is expected in February to appraise Government on what needs to be done and what help they would require from Zimbabwe. This visit comes after the official request by the ANC representative to Zanu-PF’s Fifth National People’s Congress in December for support from Zimbabwe on the hosting of the games,” Mzembi said.

He said his ministry had received several requests from companies in South Africa to assist in providing labour during the month-long games. “We are indeed behind with our preparations and we shouldn’t waste any more time. By the time the South African Cabinet team comes to Zimbabwe, we should be ready with all our programmes. The co-operation between Zimbabwe and South African and other countries fits well into the need to use the World Cup to promote the African Legacy programme that seeks to advance peace and nation-building, and the arts and culture. It also seeks to promote telecommunications development and regional integration as well as security and support for sport as declared by the African Union,” he said.

The Tourism Ministry has presented a US$70 million budget to the Finance Ministry for various World Cup-associated programmes.