Diasporans eager to invest back home

ZIMBABWEAN entrepreneurs based in South Africa have expressed readiness to return home and establish businesses that will assist in developing the economy and creating jobs.

As the neighbouring country tightens screws on permit issuance for immigrants, thousands of Zimbabweans face deportation by December when the special permits dispensation grace period expires.

While the Government has pledged to receive its citizens back home, economists have stressed the need to facilitate new investments to widen the job market and absorb returning citizens.

Speaking during a business forum in Bulawayo last Friday, which was presided over by former Industry and Commerce Minister, Dr Mike Bimha, who is also Zanu-PF national political commissar, business leaders urged the Government to facilitate more enterprise development to accommodate returning citizens.

Mr Nesbert Fuzane, who owns a logistic company in South Africa said they were eager to assist the country in creating jobs in Bulawayo.

He appealed to the Government to facilitate improved ease of doing business.

“Before the year ends South Africa is chasing away Zimbabweans who are undocumented and those people are worried about where they will go and even if they return home, what they will do to sustain themselves,” said Mr Fuzane.

Unless measures are taken to empower them, he said, returning citizens would add to the unemployment numbers hence Government and other stakeholders need to intervene on time in widening employment opportunities through vibrant enterprise development.

“With regards to the agenda set by the Government that ‘Nyika inovakwa nevene vayo/ilizwe lakhiwa ngabaninilo’, let’s come back and build our Bulawayo,” said Mr Fuzane.

“Instead of developing foreign countries allow us to come back and build our city with the resources that we have attained from the diaspora.”

He said as long as conditions at home were conducive, diaspora-based entrepreneurs were ready to use their expertise and resources acquired over the years to the advantage of the city and the country’s economy.

For this to happen, Mr Fuzane said there was a need to fine-tune business and development policies from all sectors and ensure key approvals are done on record time as opposed to referring all processes to Harare.

Prominent businessman and chief executive officer of Drummond group, Mr Ken Drummond, concurred with Mr Fuzane and urged the Government to further decentralise its services and foster inclusive business growth.

Mr Kenneth David Drummond

“The business environment in Matabeleland is somewhat un-enabling as there is no adequate ease of doing business, the reason being that everything is centralised in Harare hence many companies end up moving there,” he said.

Among other grievances, the businesspeople also called on the Government and the private sector to take concrete steps to reduce reliance on imports and increase utilisation of locally available materials to grow the economy.

The participants said many businesses in the country were not producing raw materials but were importing finished products, repackaging and reselling them.

They urged the Government to decentralise key services in line with the devolution policy and help create a conducive environment for their business operations in the city. The meeting suggested that decision making offices be established in provinces to approve investment projects saying this will reduce costs and delays of production.

The meeting was organised by the ruling party Zanu-PF as a platform for Bulawayo businesses to air out their challenges and submit recommendations to Government.

In his response, Dr Bimha said they will take the submissions to national leadership for consideration.
“Zanu-PF is a listening party, well led by His Excellency the President of Zimbabwe. He is ready to listen to your grievances, which is why he has come up with this initiative to hear your concerns as businesspeople from Bulawayo,” he said.

“I promise you, we shall relay the grievances that you have brought up to the relevant office of the President,” said Dr Bimha. – chronicle.co.zw