Chronicle Editor
Yesterday we carried a story in which Bulawayo Provincial Affairs Minister Judith Ncube lamented the serious impact Covid-19 has had on businesses in the city, negatively affecting the province’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Today we report that Government has given the tourism industry greenlight to resume all business activities in their operations with immediate effect, putting an end to a five months closure as a result of Covid-19.
Bulawayo and Victoria Falls are areas granted Special Economic Zone (SEZ) status for manufacturing and tourism, respectively.
In Bulawayo, Covid-19, forex shortages and incessant power cuts have seen capacity utilisation for most companies taking a nose dive.
In Victoria Falls the hospitality industry has had to send workers home as Covid-19 had resulted in global travel restrictions.
Zimbabwe’s SEZs are being established to fulfil the following objectives: To restore the economy’s capacity to produce goods and services competitively; to create economies of scale good enough for the locator of the proposed SEZs to be internationally competitive; to ensure inclusive growth emanating from the spread of growth nodes and diversified provincial offerings; to maximise the economic benefits of a given geographical location and its stakeholders, and to attract more investment from the international community.
This follows the gazetting of Statutory Instrument (SI) 154 of 2018 which was gazetted on August 17, 2018 that effectively brought Special Economic Zones (SEZs) into operation.
Minister Ncube commented on challenges facing industry when she visited Life Gear Trading factory as part of a familiarisation tour to assess how companies are operating under the Covid-19 pandemic.
“The economic base of Bulawayo is the industry and we are therefore engaging other stakeholders and discussing issues that will increase our GDP as a province. We are engaging different ministries and individuals as we want to bring economic players together so that we can sit down, reflect and see whether we are achieving our goals as far as devolution and attainment of Vision 2030 is concerned,” she said.
Under the Second Republic, President Mnangagwa has anchored his economic reform on devolution.
Devolution is provided for in Chapter 14 of the Constitution, with its main goal being the equitable allocation of national resources and the participation of local communities in the determination of development priorities within their areas.
The revival of industry in Bulawayo will restore the city’s status as the industrial hub, while the restart of the tourism sector is expected to excite the market and reignite global attention on “Destination Zimbabwe”.
The GDPs of Matabeleland North and Bulawayo provinces are set for a major boost.
The impact of Covid-19 on the Zimbabwean economy is not unique, as this was a global phenomenon. It is, therefore, encouraging to see Government taking action and setting the mood for a post-Covid-19 era.
Government, however, can not do it alone. Industry must now play its part.
Zimbabwe will rise again!
Online Reporter