CZI Mat’land unveils new leadership
ARENEL compliance officer, Mr Stephen Ncube, is the new Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI) Matabeleland Chapter president following yesterday’s annual general meeting in Bulawayo where the new leadership was elected.
CZI Mat’land president Mr Stephen Ncube
He takes over from Mr Joseph Gunda from General Beltings Limited and will be deputised by Mr Clive Oxiden Willows from Ref-Air who has been elected to serve a second term. The new CZI leadership comes when Bulawayo’s re-industrialisation is on a positive drive amid higher expectations to consolidate the gains achieved so far and restore the city’s manufacturing hub status.
However, local industrialists have said they are still faced with several challenges such as water supplies, inadequate power supplies and pressure from an influx of cheap imported products, which should be urgently addressed. Speaking after a closed-door meeting, Mr Gunda said the chamber expects the new leadership to hit the ground running and address many challenges facing the sector.
CZI Mat’land vice president Mr Oxiden-Willows
“Today, we have elected a new leadership and the new president for Matabeleland Chapter is Mr Ncube from Arenel, whom Mr Oxiden-Willows from Ref-Air will deputise,” said Mr Gunda. “We need to appoint the second vice president because the one who has been elected is yet to confirm, but we hope he will soon do so.
“I believe the incoming presidium will be seized with the challenges we are facing as a sector and they will continue lobbying for the manufacturing sector’s turnaround.” Mr Gunda also applauded the Government for introducing the Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG) saying the country has been experiencing economic stability in both prices of goods and exchange rates.
Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries CEO Sekai Kuvarika
He, however, said industry has been facing challenges in accessing foreign currency to import critical raw materials, which has affected production in different companies. “We take note of the stability that has been brought by the ZiG and we appreciate the effort by the Government through the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ),” he said.
“I think relatively, this has been very clear to us as business people that when we compare with the previous year, there is relative stability, prices are stable, but our biggest challenge is to get the forex using the ZiG from the banks to import raw materials,” said Mr Gunda.
“This has resulted in a lot of people, particularly in Bulawayo, struggling to the extent that some are operating at very low capacity with others on short time working two days or three days a week and others even retrenching, so it’s a real challenge.”
He said the challenge was so serious that it could start affecting the availability of local products on shelves. Among the other challenges raised during the CZI is the concern over the availability and cost of power, which industrialists said was affecting the sector’s competitiveness in both local and regional markets.
Mr Gunda also said the influx of cheap and substandard imports has also affected local industries as this is imposing unfair competition. According to the CZI 2023 manufacturing survey report, which was released in May 2024 the manufacturing sector imports about 52 percent of their raw material. — chroncile
