Cabinet approves review of ZIA Act

all investors to register with the Zimbabwe Investment Authority.
Economic Planning and Investment Promotion Minister Tapiwa Mashakada announced the Cabinet decision at a press briefing on Wednesday said the Bill also seeks to operationalise the One Stop Shop.
The ZIA Act was promulgated in 2006, following the repealing of the Export Processing Zones Act and the Zimbabwe Investment Centre Act.
Minister Mashakada said the re-evaluation of the ZIA Act had been necessitated by developments that have been taking place in respect of the fundamentals of foreign direct investment flows in the broader environment.
“Cabinet yesterday (Tuesday) made the decision to grant the amendment of the law along with a number of principles that are expected enhance the country as an investment destination.
“The major focus of amendment is for the provision of a statutory instrument that will compel foreign investors to register with the Zimbabwe Investment Authority.
“As you may remember my office last year advertised requirements for all foreign investor operating in the country to register with ZIA, but we faced stiff resistance from some investors.
“The current ZIA Act allows for investor registration as a prerogative of the investor. What we are trying to avoid is the problem of fly-by-night investors,” said the Minister.
He said the amendments to the ZIA Act are also largely meant to give functionality to the recently-established One Stop Shop Investment Centre.
“The new law will give legal effect to the OSS. We are also looking to amend section 4 and 5 of the current law so as to transform the ZIA board into a board of investment, which will cater for the broader scope of investment promotion in the country,” he said. In this respect the new law will provide for the secondment of official from relevant Government departments to the OSS.
The OSS is constituted by a number of Government departments that traditionally handled investment into the country, including Zimbabwe Revenue Authority, Immigration department, Environmental Management Authority and the Registrar of Companies among others.
The new law is also expected to result in the re-introduction of industrial parks and Export Processing Zones, which are largely perceived as catalysts for FDI inflows.
EPZs, for example, are characterised by the provison of distinctive incentives to attract FDI for export production.
The incentives typically range from tax holidays, duty-free export and import, free repatriation of profits with respect to the provision of infrastructure and immunity from labour laws among others.
The Bill according to the minister would also provide a legal instrument that would restrict investors from employing foreigners in areas where locals can meet the skills required.
“Zimbabwe’s new investment legislation is expected to play a critical role in attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) which remains elusive,” he said.
Zimbabwe has vast investment opportunities in the areas of agriculture, mining, tourism and manufacturing and has therefore potential to premise its anticipated growth in terms of an export-orientation.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Economic Planning has engaged the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency in its development of the national investment policy.
MIGA is a member of the World Bank Group whose core mission is to promote foreign direct investment into developing countries.