Ray Bande
Senior Reporter
GOVERNMENT has urged business to play its role in reducing the country’s import bill and attain a balance of trade, Minister of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, Dr Jenfan Muswere, has said.
Speaking during the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce (ZNCC) regional awards yesterday, Minister Muswere said: “I am very grateful that you have chosen a good theme for this year, focusing primarily on unlocking new frontiers for sustainable development and utilising a climate-smart business growth strategy. One of the objectives of Vision 2030 is a private sector-driven economy. Sovereignty is no longer defined by geographical boundaries. It is no longer defined in terms of territorial integrity and the security apparatus that we have. It is also defined by capacity. This is why President Mnangagwa has said ‘nyika inovakwa nevene vayo’.
“Distinguished guests, business has a role to play in developing the economy in Zimbabwe. This is precisely why the explicit goal is to have a private sector-driven economy by the year 2030. In this regard, we look at our balance of trade. The more imports we have than the exports we have, the more it creates an unfavourable balance of trade.
“The more exports we have than the imports, the more it becomes a favourable balance of trade. But what is that we are importing in our country? I also define one of the key priorities in terms of National Development Strategy (NDS) 1, which is human capital development. To define national sovereignty, it is now about intellectual capacity. What we import is what we cannot produce. It also defines the know-how. We export what we can produce. So this is where the issue of intellectual sovereignty comes into play. But how do we redefine and unlock new frontiers in the context of technological sovereignty? How do we ensure that Zimbabwe has got a favourable balance of trade? It means we need to analyse our import bill. It means business has to explore how to produce these goods locally,” said Minister Muswere.
Minister of State for Manicaland Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Advocate Misheck Mugadza, said businesspeople should not hesitate to venture into new enterprises.
“There is no business that is reserved for a certain type of people or group of people. They should access knowledge and knowhow on how to run different businesses. Manicaland has a lot of opportunities in timber plantations, mining, or tourism, but you find that our people easily venture into small-scale retail business. I feel it is my duty to tell people to explore all these other bigger opportunities,” he said.
Better Brands proprietor Mr Scott Sakupwanya received special recognition while the businessman of the year award went to Mr Tendai Saurombe.
Earthmoving entrepreneur Mr Blessing Mangwiro was the first runner-up.
The Businesswoman of the Year award went to Susan Peters.
