Source: The Herald – Breaking news.
Oliver Kazunga
Senior Business Reporter
ZIMBABWE registered a 35,5 percent increase in investments to US$1,836 billion in the first half of this year buoyed by pro-business and investor-friendly policies of the incumbent Government.
President Mnangagwa’s administration has, since coming to power in 2017, adopted the “Zimbabwe is open for business” mantra to attract investment in various sectors of the economy.
Ostensibly, as Zimbabwe continues to negotiate the maze of bottlenecks laid in its way over nearly two decades of meltdown, isolation and Western economic embargo, there is no denying the Government has successfully laid a firm foundation, including through massive investments in key infrastructure and enablers, to touch off rapid economic growth going forward.
The Government is also working feverishly on a global engagement and re-engagement drive, marketing the country as an attractive investment destination after close to two decades of international isolation from the global village.
In its 2023 second-quarter report, the Zimbabwe Investment Development Agency (ZIDA), one of the milestones of the Second Republic’s multi-faceted success stories, indicated that of the US$1,836 billion investment, foreign contribution was US$1,757 billion while local contribution stood at US$78,103 million.
ZIDA is a statutory body formed after the enactment of the Zimbabwe Investment Development Agency (ZIDA) Act, which was signed into law in February 2020.
As a statutory body, ZIDA’s main mandate is to promote and protect investment in the country. The investment promotion body has had unlimited success since its inception.
In the second quarter of this year, the agency facilitated the development of the regulations for the Special Economic Zones and general investments such as the Base Minerals Export Control Amendment Act, which provides for banning export of unprocessed lithium to encourage beneficiation.
ZIDA has also signed a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding with ZimTrade and APIEX of Mozambique to enhance trade and investment between Zimbabwe and that neighbouring country.
Locally, the investment agency managed to sign a collaboration agreement with the Confederation of Zimbabwean Industries to enable advocacy and information sharing with the private sector.
In the first six months of 2022, Zimbabwe’s total investments amounted to US$1,355 billion with a foreign contribution of US$1,309 billion while local contribution was US$45,708 million.
ZIDA has, between January and June 2023, facilitated the importation of capital equipment from abroad (physical assets of a business, such as machinery, tools, and vehicles) valued at US$790,4 million from US$626,7 million in the corresponding half last year.
The agency also indicated that during the half-year period under review, the country received a total of 287 investors compared to 187 recorded in the corresponding period in 2022, as it continues to refine investment approval procedures in the country.
The investment proposals approved by ZIDA thus far cut across all economic sectors — agriculture, construction, energy, manufacturing, mining, services, tourism, and transport.
The issued investment licences were for investors from countries that include America, Australia, Britain, Canada, Pakistan, Russia, Rwanda, Singapore, South Africa, Turkey, Tanzania, United Arab Emirates, China and Spain among others.
During the period under review, the mining sector recorded the highest number of investors at 130 followed by the services sector at 62, manufacturing (55), energy (12), construction (11), agriculture (8) transport, and tourism at seven and two, respectively.
In the first half of 2022, the mining industry registered 47 investment approvals followed by the services sector with 25, manufacturing (20), agriculture (8), transport (3), tourism (2), construction, and energy one apiece.
The biggest investment to date has been the US$900 million sunk into an iron and steel plant, by Chinese firm Tsingshan Holdings, which is currently developing Africa’s largest integrated steel works, which will produce 500 000 tonnes of steel by November 2023.
With China leading the investments, Zimbabwe has seen multi-million dollar investments from China in projects that include Hwange Power Station (US$1,4 billion, Robert Mugabe International Airport (US$150 million), US$420 million purchases of lithium firm Prospect Lithium Zimbabwe.
China’s Huayou Cobalt invested a further $300 million to build a plant to produce 450 000 metric tons of lithium concentrates annually.
Another Chinese company, Sinomine Resource Group, invested US$200 million to build a lithium plant at Bikita Minerals, to expand existing operations after acquiring the company for US$180 million.
South Africa’s Tharisa Capital says its US$4,2 billion Karo Mining platinum project in Zimbabwe will place the group, which is targeting to become a multi-mine and multi-jurisdiction company, among the top 10 platinum producers globally. Last year, the Government partnered two Chinese investors, Eagle Canyon International Group Limited and Pacific Goal Investment, for the development of the US$13 billion mine-to-energy industrial park in Mashonaland West province.
The project, the first of its kind in Zimbabwe, is expected to boost the economy through the beneficiation of minerals and underpins the Government’s commitment to implement clean energy projects.
As part of the Second Republic’s strategy to rebuild the economy and attract investment inflows into the country from across the globe, ZIDA has reduced the time needed to register a new business from 20 to seven days.
While addressing media stakeholders in Harare last week, ZIDA chief facilitator Never Nyemudzo said the streamlining of time required to register a business, under the One Stop Shop Investment Services Centre was part of the ongoing interventions to attract investment into the country.
In this context, he said ZIDA had amalgamated services of over 18 Government departments to ensure timeous consultations and approval of business licences.
“Looking back, our lead times from point of application to approval used to be 21 days plus, but it is now seven days.
“When you come to make contact with ZIDA, it means you have gotten in contact with the whole Government machinery,” he was quoted as saying.
He said the agency planned to launch a self-service investment portal in the second half of this year. Through the planned online portal, Mr Nyemudzo said the country’s investment approval time is expected to decline further to three days. In an interview, economic commentator George Nhepera said the increase in approved investments during the periods under review was largely due to Zimbabwe being considered internationally as an emerging industrialised nation that offers good investment returns and value.
“According to the African Development Bank economic reports, many nations including Zimbabwe are being considered resilient in spite of economic hardships they are going through at the moment.
Due to their natural capital in the form of mineral resources, fertile soils and good climate, Zimbabwe and other emerging economies have a good comparative advantage making us a strong destination for investment even above many western countries,” he said
“Our Government policy of striving to be a private sector-led economy under a market-based, determination of prices of goods and services is proving to be a game changer in our attraction of investment to our country.
“Above all, our skilled and knowledgeable workforce is a force to reckon with in the SADC region hence investors consider it a distinct advantage when setting up companies in our country.”
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