Ncube urged to stimulate informal sector, small-scale miners

FINANCE minister Mthuli Ncube has been urged to come up with stimulus packages to support people in the informal sector, including smallholder farmers and small-scale miners in his 2022 national budget.

Ncube is expected to announce the 2022 national budget this month. During recent public hearings by the Budget and Finance Portfolio Committee, the public suggested that the budget should prioritise social services such as education, health and agriculture.

He is expected to announce a $900 billion budget for 2022.

The Zimbabwe Coalition on Debt and Development (Zimcodd), in its recent statement on the 2022 budget, said there was need to raise citizen’s awareness on budgetary issues to facilitate their robust participation during consultative meetings.

“The budget should stimulate structural transformation and spark massive job creation through the inclusion of the informal sector, agriculture, and small-scale and artisanal mining in the mainstream economy,” the Zimcodd statement read.

“It should also provide meaningful economic stimulus packages and financial inclusion targeting the informal sector, smallholder agriculture and small-scale and artisanal mining sectors where the majority of Zimbabweans currently earn their livelihoods.”

The debt watchdog said the 2022 budget should address issues of extreme poverty and inequality through the provision of universal social safety nets and improved service delivery in the education and health sectors, funded through a redistributive wealth tax and contributions to the Sovereign Wealth Fund.

“It should support State-driven infrastructural development to address the gaps in low-cost housing; school and clinic construction; small dam construction as a means to create new jobs and provide quality and accessible public infrastructure while stabilising macro-economic fundamentals by strengthening Public Finance Management and extinguishing corruption,” it said.

The coalition also called for plugging of illicit financial flows in the mining sector, and an end to unjust mining tax incentives.

“Whereas this is not the totality of all budget expectations, it is vital for the government to limit the acquisition of debt to finance the growth aspirations of the economy,” Zimcodd said.

“It is imperative for the government to co-operate with development partners to expedite the support of vital services such as health, education and food relief programmes. Also, being accountable remains a key role for the government to garner policy support and enable wider stakeholder engagement.”-newsday.co.zw