Chronicle Editor
SOME 20 years ago, Filabusi in Insiza District, Matabeleland South Province was a growth point devoid of any growth.
Only the Post Office with that antenna towering over it, a few Government offices and civil servants’ houses. There were a few shops as well and one supermarket — a SPAR one if we aren’t mistaken — to serve its small population.
It was a typical growth point of that time, a dustbowl where road-runners, goats, donkeys and cattle had all the freedom to frolic.
Filabusi is now vibrant, a growth point worth its name. There are now several businesses selling just about everything.
Apart from retail businesses, there is now a large wholesale outlet to handle bulkier orders. The population has ballooned over the years.
The centre’s rapid transformation is reflected in housing development as well. People there are building massive properties, including double-stories. Furthermore, there are two or so football clubs that are campaigning in the second-tier. It is clear therefore that more money is flowing in the town than it did 20 years ago.
The power behind all this is gold. There is much more investment in gold which occurs around the growth point and Insiza District in general. And what is most gratifying is that it is our people who are making the investments in the yellow metal.
They are making big money which is reflecting in the large houses and businesses they are building, as well as the human bustle around the centre.
“A long time ago people were arrested for engaging in gold mining activities but things changed when the Government started encouraging people to empower themselves,” we cited a resident, Mr Nkosilathi Hlongwane saying yesterday.
“So, more young people started taking an interest in gold mining. Young men are forming groups to mine gold and a majority of them are building homes in their rural areas, buying cattle, and building shops. Most of the houses you see around here are owned by gold miners.”
To us, the activity at Filabusi highlights the growth in the wider economy, which is filtering right through to the base. Economic growth can only be meaningful if it results in human development. That is development that makes so much sense that we won’t need Finance Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube telling us about gross domestic product and presenting
it in those curves and graphs that only economists can comprehend. Filabusi is development that everyone can feel, touch, see and experience.
All credit goes to the Government for implementing strategies that are breathing more life into the people’s lives and the wider economy. Statistically, the economy has been growing since 2018. It grew by 8,5 percent in 2021 and by about 6,5 percent in 2022.
The agriculture industry met its US$8 billion target in 2021, which was two years in advance. The mining sector was a US$2,8 billion economy in 2018 but should be a US$12 billion economy by the end of this year.
As we noted earlier, statistical indicators of economic growth do not make sense unless they result in greater human development. What we are seeing at Filabusi and other such places across the country; at mines and farms and in towns indeed make the figures make sense.
However, we urge everyone of us, from the Government to the grassroots, not to get carried away. There is a lot more that authorities, the people and strategic partners must do to consolidate that growth. The local currency must stabilise more sustainably. If it does that, inflation will follow. The manufacturing sector must be nursed up and up until closed factories reopen and capacity utilisation in existing firms exceed the 70 percent targeted for this year.
Job opportunities must be widened and those jobs must be of higher quality and pay better.
There is a lot more work to be done at all levels, but it is notable that the country is firmly on course to attaining its goal of an upper middle-income economy by 2030.
Online Reporter