BULAWAYO, Apr. 23, 2026 (NewsDay Live) – Mayor David Coltart has met with French Ambassador to Zimbabwe Paul-Bertrand Barets to deepen bilateral ties, welcoming a new digital project at the Natural History Museum and pitching French language learning as key to unlocking African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) opportunities for the city’s youth.
The meeting, held on Wednesday, focused on partnerships as the city seeks to strengthen relations with other nations.
Barets said the French Embassy in Zimbabwe is working on a project to digitise data on insect specimens in partnership with the Natural History Museum.
The project, set to be commissioned on Friday, is being jointly coordinated by the National University of Science and Technology and the University of Zimbabwe.
The French envoy said the initiative is expected to boost tourism in the region.
“Tourists visit Zimbabwe, and some of them may identify investment opportunities,” Coltart said.
Coltart also commended the teaching of the French language in local schools, saying it will create opportunities for young people to access global markets, as Africa moves to implement the AfCFTA, with more than 400 million people on the continent speaking French.
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