After a protracted period of negotiations, Zimbabwean President, Robert Gabriel Mugabe, Wednesday 11, swore in opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, 57, as Prime Minister in a unity government.

Mugabe administered the oath of office to Tsvangirai during a heavily attended ceremony in Harare.Mugabe was yielding to international pressure, runaway inflation and a devastating cholera pandemic to include his arch-rival in the government.

Although the power sharing deal was sealed two months ago, Mugabe procrastinated implementing it and, rather, hurled invectives at his opponent. Tsvangirai's appointment, it is hoped, may end a political crisis that erupted after disputed elections last March.

Two deputy Prime Ministers were also sworn in: Thokozani Khupe, the deputy leader of Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) and Arthur Mutambara, the leader of a break-away faction of the MDC.

Meanwhile, the cabinet in the new coalition government will be sworn in on Friday, February 13. It would be recalled that Tsvangirai won the first round of last year's presidential election but withdrew from the run-off, citing violence against his supporters.

The two sides tried to end the stalemate with a series of talks that kept stalling when they couldn't agree on how much power Mugabe would retain.

Tsvangirai had said he would sign a deal only if Mugabe gave up some power.The unity government is coming at a time when the government is facing a severe cholera epidemic, an economic depression and a 90 percent unemployment rate.

Hyperinflation, running at some 231 million percent as at last July, is causing prices to double every day and more than half of the population relies only on emergency food aid.

The cholera epidemic has reportedly claimed close to 4,000 lives and infected about 65,000 people since August 2008.

This situation was aggravated by lack of water treatment chemicals and a problem with waste disposal in most parts of the country.Though the government is left to grapple with this litany of problems, there is deep scepticism about whether the unity government will work.

Sceptics hold that, at best, it will be a transitional arrangement leading eventually to a new Constitution and fresh elections. But, as at now, the MDC will control the prominent Ministries of Health, Education and Finance.

Like the rest of the bureaucracy, Health, Education and Finance have no money to spend on reconstruction and the big international donors have said they will not grant substantial additional aid until there are real changes on how Zimbabwe is governed.

Bricklayer's Son

Tsvangirai is the eldest son of Chibwe Dzingirai Tsvangirai, a bricklayer who died at age of 78. While working in an Anglo American nickel mine in Bindura, northeast of Harare, he became involved in labour union activities, later rising to lead the mineworkers' union. He was also Secretary-General of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions.Tsvangirai established the MDC in 1999 and helped to defeat a referendum in February 12, 2000.