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Prince Sunduzani Property Reporter
BULAWAYO economic development officer Kholisani Moyo says the city is ready to implement the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) model aimed at catalysing investment and reviving industries.
Mr Moyo said on Friday that local authority had already put in place necessary ground work for the implementation of the programme in the city and was awaiting guidance from the central Government. He said BCC has already put in place initiatives to improve ease of doing business in order to pave way for the implementation of the programme.
“I want to say that as Bulawayo we are ready to implement the Special Economic Zone initiative. When Government gazetted the SEZ Bill, as Bulawayo we didn’t sit on our hands. The first thing that we did as Bulawayo was to establish SEZ committee, which involves all stakeholders and meets weekly,” said Mr Moyo.
“We identified sectors that can be recommended to the SEZ Authority. Once they come up with the secretariat of the SEZ, Bulawayo is ready to say that these are the sectors that we want you to consider under SEZ. We have already gone out to identify places where the companies will operate from. So if today we are told that the SEZ authority secretariat is there, we can be able to say as Bulawayo this is what we have done.”
The SEZ policy was signed into law in 2016 as part of measures to attract foreign direct investment through enabling free market oriented legislation and flexible fiscal terms in designated areas. Business associations have however expressed concern over slow progress in the implementation of the programme. SEZs Authority board chair, Dr Gideon Gono, has said lack of funding, absence of a chief executive officer (CEO) and secretariat, were impeding the operationalisation of three SEZ pilot projects hence slow-progress in the implementation process.
Online Reporter