Online Reporter
Michael Tome, Business Reporter
THE Bulawayo City Council yesterday showcased the diverse range of lucrative investment opportunities within the metropolitan province and surrounding areas during the inaugural Khumbul’ekhaya Investment Conference (KIC) held in Harare.
The conference aimed to attract potential investors, particularly those from the city’s designated “diaspora community”, including Harare, to seize the attractive opportunities in the metropolis and participate in the city’s development.
The local authority’s efforts reflect its development aspirations, buttressed by the Second Republic’s national development rallying call “Nyika inovakwa nevene vayo/ilizwe lakhiwa ngabaninilo”, which recognises the reality that no one else can build other people’s country except its own citizens.
Through highlighting the attractive investment opportunities in the city and its precinct, the Bulawayo City Council hopes to stimulate economic growth, development and its reindustrialisation.
Some of the key investment opportunities highlighted during the conference include the establishment of waste-to-energy projects, which would help the city to sustainably manage its solid waste while also generating power.
The council is also seeking investors to develop solar farms to ensure a stable energy supply for its industries.
An example of a potential mega investment opportunity that needs investors is the planned construction of a US$150 million industrial park at Umvumila, with 188 hectares of land allocated for the initiative.
The industrial park has the potential to attract new businesses and create employment opportunities for the local communities.
The city is also seeking investors to renovate and build new sporting stadiums, including soccer stadiums, to complement existing facilities like Barbourfields Stadium.
Furthermore, the local authority is looking for investors to rehabilitate old roads and build new highways to reduce congestion.
In terms of water infrastructure, Bulawayo aims to attract investors to build dams, such as the proposed Glassblock Dam, to address its water woes and reduce reliance on the Zimbabwe National Water Authority for water supply.
Other opportunities lie in the planned regeneration of old suburbs like Makokoba as well as the renewal of bus termini in the city, to breathe new life into these areas.
These projects are long-term and require significant funding, which is why the local authority is also targeting pension funds and seeking partnerships with bigger financing organisations like Insurance and Pensions Commission, National Social Security Authority, and Infrastructure and Development Bank of Zimbabwe, to secure the necessary funding to complete these projects and drive economic growth.
“We have noted that we have quite a number of people who originally come from Bulawayo or are associated with the City of Bulawayo for some years and they have moved to Harare and are now doing great things in Harare.
“So, we came to showcase some of the investment opportunities we have back at home. We have looked at quite a number of opportunities that we want to market to these potential investors,” said Bulawayo City Council economic development officer Mr Kholisani Moyo while presenting Bulawayo’s opportunities to converged investors.
