Zimbabwe's three main political parties have reached agreement on the text of Constitutional Amendment Number 19 Bill and are expected to initiate soon the relevant parliamentary procedures for it to become law, The Herald reported on Saturday.

The opposition spokesperson Nelson Chamisa confirmed that an agreement had been reached. The Minister of Information and Publicity Sikhanyiso Ndlovu said on Friday he was still to get confirmation of the outcome of the latest round of talks which ended on Thursday night.

However, he said reports of an agreement were welcome. "That's a welcome procedure, the people of Zimbabwe have long awaited this process to take place and come to conclusion. We now look forward to gazetting it," said Ndlovu.

In a statement, Chamisa said: "Dialogue resumed on Monday Nov. 24 in South Africa and the negotiating teams from the three major political parties have since reached an agreement on the issue of the Constitutional Amendment Number 19."

The development comes on the back of attempts by MDC-T to have Thabo Mbeki step down as the facilitator of the inter-party dialogue after he criticised opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai for insulting SADC leaders while pandering to the whims of the European Union and the United States.

Mbeki wrote to MDC-T before the latest round of talks. Several countries and organisations have over the past week been urging Tsvangirai's party to put national interests above their sectarian preferences for the sake of progress.

A constitutional amendment requires a two-thirds majority for it to be forwarded to President Robert Mugabe as Head of State, who is expected to sign the Bill into law. With all three parliamentary parties backing the Bill, it should get unanimity.

Chamisa said there was still disagreement over the issues of provincial governors, permanent secretaries and ambassadors as well as the National Security Council in the negotiations for forming the inclusive government.