Zimbabwe Business Watch : Week 25
June 17th, 2009
Manufacturing continues to struggle to re-equip and re-capitalise in order to compete against foreign imports.
Ironically SADC certification allows neighbouring countries duty free access to the Zimbabwean market which is further punishing local industry. There are reports of unscrupulous businesses, mainly importers of finished goods, which are forging Certificates of Origin and supplying product out of Asia.
Interest rates continue to be a major concern as forex shortages push up the cost to the level that far exceeds the regional average. Various submissions are being made to the Transitional Government to address the serious consequences of these anomalies. Business bodies are protesting and government has offered a sympathetic ear but no decisive action has yet been taken.
Disparities with the regional community abound and Workers Compensation is said to be 3 to 4 times than that of neighbour, South Africa.
June 18th, 2009 04:37
Commentators often summarize our country’s political history as a string of blunders, missed opportunities, and self-inflicted disasters. If they give us any credit at all, it is usually limited to citing our country as once being the “food basket” of the region.
But those of us who lived there know that our little nation was much more than a simple producer of staple food. Here are just some of the local manufacturing industries/products which I remember our country used to produce, making us one of the most self-sufficient nations in the world:
Cement, bricks, roof sheets, structural timbers, plywood and chipboard, window and door frames, window glass, pipes and cables, nails and screws, hinges. Refrigerators, furniture, beds, wrought iron, dinner ware, carpets. A vast range of cotton and textiles, clothing, suitcases, shoes and sandals. Breakfast cereals, cooking oils, sugar, nuts, beer, wine, spirits, soft drinks and fruit cordial, crisps, sweets, tea, coffee, processed meats, milk, butter, ice-cream, cheese, tinned food, dried food, toothpaste, toiletries, soap, shampoo. Polish, paper, envelopes, stamps, banknotes, medicines, cough syrup. Fertilisers, chemicals, paint, car tyres, coffins, boat building and batteries. Refined copper, tin, steel, asbestos, nickel and sheet metal. Agricultural implements, ploughs, water pumps, wheelbarrows, ethanol fuel. Jewellery made with local emeralds, sapphires, semi-precious stones and gold. Assembly of cars, bicycles, TV’s and radios.
Together with the achievements of our once-celebrated wildlife industry and the disproportionately high number of world-quality sports and arts personalities that we have produced relative to our small population, we can be rightfully proud of the past achievements of our country and its innovative, hard-working and friendly people. Were it not for the impact of our short-sighted politicians, Cold War intrigues, civil war, and the more recent gross corruption and mismanagement of our economy by ZANU-PF, by now our nation would probably be the social and economic jewel of Africa. Hopefully, when good governance is finally restored and race is no longer used as a cheap political weapon, Zimbabwe’s economic potential will once again be realised.