HARARE, Jun. 3 (NewsDay Live) — National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) chief executive officer Munyaradzi Stephen Charangwa has resigned on medical grounds, barely two months after taking office.
The NRZ board confirmed the resignation on Tuesday and announced the appointment of deputy chief executive officer Ainah Dube-Kaguru as acting CEO pending the recruitment of a substantive replacement.
Charangwa assumed office on April 1, 2026, becoming the first executive appointed under the parastatal’s new chief executive officer structure, which replaced the long-standing general manager model.
In a statement, the board thanked Charangwa for his contribution to the company’s strategic turnaround framework and wished him a speedy recovery.
His departure comes as NRZ pursues a recapitalisation programme aimed at reviving rail transport through the acquisition of locomotives, wagons and passenger coaches, as well as the rehabilitation of rail infrastructure, signalling systems and communication networks.
Before joining NRZ, Charangwa held senior positions in investment management and public-sector advisory services, including roles at the Zimbabwe Investment and Development Agency (ZIDA), Old Mutual and various state-owned enterprises.
Soon after taking office, he said his first 100 days would be dedicated to a diagnostic review designed to inform a revised turnaround strategy for the rail operator.
Among his stated priorities was repositioning rail as the preferred mode of bulk cargo transport amid growing demand from the mining and agricultural sectors.
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Dube-Kaguru, who now takes over in an acting capacity, previously served as acting general manager before being appointed deputy CEO. She remains the substantive chief operations officer, a position she has held since 2023.
The leadership change marks another transition for the state-owned rail operator, which has experienced frequent changes at the top in recent years.
NRZ is among the state-owned enterprises whose assets were transferred to the Mutapa Investment Fund as part of government efforts to improve performance and unlock value in public entities.
Once one of the region’s largest rail operators, NRZ carried about 18 million tonnes of cargo annually in the late 1990s. Last year, the company transported 2.03 million tonnes against a target of 2.13 million tonnes.
The board did not indicate when a substantive chief executive officer would be appointed.
