HARARE – President Emmerson Mnangagwa declared on Wednesday that businessman Wicknell Chivayo had a “golden heart” after he donated 10 ambulances and 200,000 litres of fuel worth over $400,000 to the government.
The donation, accepted by Mnangagwa at State House, adds to another 10 ambulances Chivayo donated last year.
Accepting the gift, Mnangagwa lavished praise on the 45-year-old, who is linked to lucrative state contracts.
“This donation has been made possible through the generosity of an astute and maverick young businessman Wicknell Chivayo, who has a golden heart and continues to tirelessly support various key government programmes under Vision 2030, which is anchored on modern healthcare systems that leave no one and no place behind,” Mnangagwa said.
The donation, he added, “exemplifies the critical role of the private sector in complementing government’s efforts to deliver quality services in the health sector.” He challenged private companies to “emulate this gesture and exemplary conduct.”
The ambulances, which Mnangagwa described as “state-of-the-art,” are equipped with respirators, oxygen delivery systems, defibrillators and advanced patient monitoring units.
One will be deployed to each of the country’s ten provinces, and Mnangagwa said the fleet would “strengthen emergency response capacity and improve access to critical healthcare services.”
President Emmerson Mnangagwa tries out one of the ambulances donated by businessman Wicknell Chivayo at State House on March 25, 2026
Chivayo, an incorrigible show-off who owns a private jet and drives Rolls Royces, shot to national fame through eye-popping donations of high-end vehicles and millions of dollars in cash to a confounding mix of celebrities, politicians, church leaders, influencers, football clubs and musicians.
Occasionally, he makes donations that benefit ordinary Zimbabweans – the ambulances among them.
His state contracts are shrouded in mystery, and he is notoriously reticent about how he makes his money, only ever forthcoming about how he spends it. – ZimLive
The post Mnangagwa describes Chivayo as “an astute and maverick young businessman” appeared first on The Zimbabwe Mail.