Chronicle Editor
Kiyapili Sibanda, Business Reporter
THE Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI) has engaged 20 representatives of foreign firms from India and Turkey to be part of its annual congress next month.
The industry body has been working with Government to explore investment opportunities in various sectors of the economy and will hold its annual congress from 2 to 4 August in Victoria Falls.
CZI president, Mr Sifelani Jabangwe, said the two delegations one from Turkey and India have confirmed their participation.
“We will have two delegations with us, one is from Turkey and the other from India. Each of them will be bringing 10 companies that are looking for investments in Zimbabwe. This means we will have about 20 foreign companies with us,” he said.
Mr Jabangwe told Business Chronicle that this would be the first time that foreign delegates would have participated at the CZI congress, as the industry representative organisation seeks ways of promoting investment through dialogue. He said the participation of the foreign firms would help them to understand how local businesses operate in the country.
“We also hope that their participation at the congress will help them to interact with both local companies and this interaction will help them to understand how local businesses are operating and to show them that it is possible to invest and operate in Zimbabwe,” he said.
Mr Jabangwe said that the 2017 edition of the CZI congress would have a mini investment forum where they will market the premier holiday resort of the Victoria Falls. He said a representative from the Indian Chamber of Industries would talk about how India is growing its economy and lessons that Zimbabwe can draw.
Mr Jabangwe highlighted that the manufacturing sector has been given a lifeline through the Statutory Instrument 64 of 2016.
“Imported products can cause problems if they become excessive and people should have faith with the locally produced products. These products (imports) displace local products from the market resulting in low capacity utilisation for local companies or even closure of companies. This leads to job losses and lower taxes for the Government that may cause trade deficits and liquidity challenges,” he said. — @Kiyaz_Cool
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