via Brazil rules out ZimAsset funding – DailyNews Live by John Kachembere 20 MAY 2014
Brazil says it will not financially support Zimbabwe’s projects under its ambitious economic blueprint, the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation (Zim Asset).
The country’s ambassador to Zimbabwe Marcia Maro Da Silva told the businessdaily that the southern African nation is too rich to beg for financial assistance.
“As a rule, Brazil does not give any support to sovereign nations and we don’t give out hand-outs either. Usually, we find synergies and business opportunities where we can work with people on various projects,” she said.
“Zimbabwe is a rich country and does not need donations but investments. ZimAsset offers opportunities for Brazil to come and invest in infrastructure and other sectors but there is need for clarity on the country’s economic policies,” added Silva.
This comes as the cash-strapped southern African country has been struggling to secure $27 billion to fund projects enunciated in ZimAsset, which is supposed to guide economic development programmes until December 2018.
The blueprint, which borrows from the ruling party Zanu PF’s election manifesto and previous national development programmes, identifies four major clusters, namely food security and nutrition, social services and poverty reduction, infrastructure and utilities and value addition and beneficiation.
ZimAsset comes on the back of a cocktail of economic policies that have dismally failed to breathe life into the country’s economy.
These range from the Economic Structural Adjustment Programme (Esap) to Zimbabwe Programme for Economic and Social Transformation (Zimprest) to the abandoned Medium Term Plan that was supposed to run until next year, among others.
Zimbabwe, which according to the international Monetary Fund has an external debt of approximately $10,7 billion, is failing to get loans due its bad payment record.
China — long considered Zimbabwe’s all-weather friend — recently conceded that it would only provide funding to the country on the condition that the loan is securitised on vast mineral resources.
“My government is committed to give our support to Zimbabwe’s economic recovery,” said outgoing Chinese ambassador Lin Lin.
“What I can say now is that the two sides are carrying out discussions on lines of credit provided by Chinese financial institutions as proposed by Zimbabwean side using your minerals as kind of security.
We are looking forward to reach a kind of an agreement on that issue and I hope sometime this year,” he said recently.
Economist John Robertson says without right policies, which include the respect for property rights and curbing endemic corruption, Zim Asset will remain a pipe dream.
“The policy does not only need money, but also policies that would make people make that level of commitment. Policies that will not damage property and ownership rights,” he said.
Robertson noted that the economic blueprint did not have a concrete milestones and substance to remedy the country’s economic ills.
“The policy is not a plan, but a description of a destination because it has neither indication nor route of how to get there,” Robertson said.
He said plans to get some of that funding from Diaspora remittances was bound to fail as the efforts to securitise minerals underground.
COMMENTS
$27billion, Pfizer is bidding for Astra Zeneca with that amount. ZANU wants that much for their pie in the sky program.
No one wants to give them the money and rightly so, we are a rich nation they say. We all know we are but the problem is ZANU has stolen the nation’s riches. All the gold ,all the diamonds, all the platinum, all the chrome, all the nickel, ZANU has paid offdfor the rigging of elections, have stashed away just in case they are forced to leave the country.
ZANU should be serious and produce the goods. Its their program this zimasset, pay for it.
ZANU is not serious.
here is my analogy for ZimAsset.
A foolish old man decides that he wants a car,a house,fully furnished with all mod cons gated and with a durawall and an alarm system in place and a few happy kids and a wife too. With no money or sperm
he walks over to his neighbours and asks them give him the resources to make his dreams come true. Of course his neighbours are alarmed. They don’t understand how this can be possible.They wonder if the man has lost his mind. They shake their heads in disbelief and shut their doors in the man’s wrinkly face.
This is an article about nothing. There never was any possibility of ZANU getting money from the Brazilians in the first place.
Zim is a rich country led by selfish and poor minds!!
LOOKING AT their policies which are arrogant, unfriendly (even to locals), lack of respect for property and individuals, proness to violence and impunity, likelihood of victimization by greedy,oligarchs, lack of consistency, hiding vital intentions (opaqueness)and rampant corruption we are back to 2007 scenario and steadily sinking into quicksand.Why the president put verbose-no action empty headed bureaucrats in charge of the economy is mind boggling. Mr Chinamasa can best be described as an activist. In his position we need a sober, stable and gentlemanly person such as Francis Nhema or Gidza Gono. These are ZPF human resources of distinction and a certain credibility. Even when Gono handled a challenging economy and did questionable actions, he had credible explanations for his actions. I feel ZANU PF can do something NOW. Its not too late. However there is need for a complete overhaul in macro-economic policy and key Human resources (ministers). This can do the magic trick.Giving priority to aligning first those laws affecting the economy would add spice to the gourmet. The president did well when he spoke about changes in indigenization law. He must move a step further and craft a new legislation to reinforce what he already said. I suggest he proposes a law making certain areas of the economy only open to indigenous peoples, then again propose that new investors open up to local partners on mutual basis as parties may determine, but make it mandatory for purposes of local people empowerment. Empowerment is vital since it was the fiat accompli for the grueling liberation war. Whites who are citizens must be given land in any manner the current government may determine, but nevertheless the must get land as bona fide citizens. The sharing of farming skills between these and black neighbours must be made policy to trickle knowledge to locals.Then I will say may our president live forever and so will all citizens and they will also pray to God the Almighty for Him to bless our grand old man. The good Mr Mugabe did cannot be erased and we really dont look forward to that. This is our leader who did things that stand out, but we need him to change things soon for the better of his country. He is a soverign ruler and his pride should not be dented by bona fide policy shift to save the economy of his people. Love, sincerity, hope, repentance, sharing, non enemity, desire for peace and posterity will be magic. Personally I was there at independence and i yearn for the love, camarraderie and joy of the time. We are still there to support Our grand old man if he only accepts this proposition of peace stability and love. We love our president and we dont like to send wrong signals. Zanu PF can still drive change.We are with anyone who cares for us as before. The Time is NOW MR PRESIDENT with all due respesct and sincerity. We are not interested in power politics but in national well-being and not opening the door for strangers to judge us with ulterior moives. I RECOMMEND ANOTHER RECONCILIATION AND YOU CAN STILL DO IT MR PRESIDENT BECAUSE YOU ONCE DID IT IN 1980 WHEN EVERYBODY THOUGHT IT WAS WELL NIGH IMPOSSIBLE. TO US WE SEE HOPE IN YOU. MAY YOU LIVE TO DO THIS AND SEE YOUR CHILDREN US, BLACK AND WHITE LIVE IN PROSPERITY. IN GOD’S MIGHTY NAME WE LOVE YOU AND HOPE AS YOUR CHILDREN YOU CAN LISTEN TO US. THANK YOU MR PRESIDENT. MAY GOD BLESS ZIMBABWE OUR SOVEREIGN NATION AND ECONOMIC BEHEMOTH.PLEASE DADDY….DO IT!!!!!!!!! SERIOUS CITIZEN
You read like Zim Asset, a pipe dream. Mugabe never had good intentions. The only way forward is to reject Mugabe and Zanu PF and start with fresh young people with vision. 34 years of rampant theft, 34 years of oppression and you want more?
Chibuku, Johnson?
Woo hoo – I’m loving watching the collapse of the country.
“The country’s ambassador to Zimbabwe Marcia Maro Da Silva told the businessdaily that the southern African nation is too rich to beg for financial assistance.”
Give credit to the ambassador for being honest and telling the truth as it is – problem is that this will not sink in the theiving scum bags thick skulls
If ZANU PF can’t be trusted with the little things, how can they be trusted with the bigger things? It’s a matter of principle and ZANU PF has none, under ZANU PF, Zimbabwe has accumulated a US$10B debt we cannot repay and this government expects someone out there to loan us US$27B given our record and history of repayments?
‘Hanzi hatipe mari vane sovereignty. Saka vanopa vasina? Isu togona kunoipihwa here tikafanodya hedu sovereignty yacho yatiinayo takamirira kuti Chinamasa awane mari kwaari kumberereka achienda zuva nezuva’…. I think any businessman still operating today in Zimbabwe could do a better job than our government. At least, apart from having an idea, like most people have all the time, the businessman sourced for capital to start his project. Our government sat long to come up with a grand program for which they had no penny to implement. And they are even burning more fuels and hours running around the country to spread awareness of ZimAss yet the same could be spent realigning policy.
Development cannot be drilled into people by forcing unpalatable policy on them, rather people would be willing to expend their energy in a liberated environment in which they pursue their personal interests and they will move the country along with them. The country are the people and their development and satisfaction is the development of the country and nation.
What exactly is difficult about changing some of these stupid gukurahundi economic policies?
You will never attract investments until you change. Its not a Western thing to demand investor-friendly policies. This is a world wide requirement; it has nothing to do with white or black, west or East!!
More countries should follow Brazil