Harare  - Zimbabwe's government on Tuesday called the death of Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa, a vocal critic of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, "a tragedy."

"It's a real tragedy for the entire continent," Information Minister Sikhanyiso Ndlovu told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.

Mugabe would issue a statement later Tuesday after a weekly cabinet meeting, he said.

Mwanawasa, 59, was one of the few African leaders who dared openly criticize Zimbabwe's authoritarian leader of 28 years.

In 2007, he called Zimbabwe, which is in throes of economic meltdown, a "sinking Titanic." (dpa)