CZI lauds syndication of exports

Michael Tome Business Reporter
The Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI) has commended the promotion of syndication of Zimbabwean companies to penetrate and grow export markets. CZI president Henry Ruzvidzo said the move would create a common purpose of penetrating into the export markets.

An export syndicate is a self-organised group of companies, corporations or entities that are formed to transact or run a business through pursuing a shared interest.

In a brief on the sidelines of the CZI exporters’ seminar held in this week, Mr Ruzvidzo highlighted that the creation of a common frontier to penetrate markets was ideal in growing exports.

He spoke about how syndication has helped South African exporters to penetrate markets.

“I believe syndication is a good idea, Zimbabwean companies need to do more of that, South Africans have demonstrated how well that works, they go into a market set up infrastructure which will be specifically occupied by South African companies who will in turn buy SA products.

“As a result the whole chain links up and making SA very strong in the markets that they go to, so Zimbabweans need to emulate such an approach.

“We can start by simply collaborating and perhaps got to the extent of putting up infrastructure as time goes like warehouses or even shopping malls,” said Mr Ruzvidzo.

Meanwhile, Mr Ruzvidzo bemoaned persistent forex shortages and prevailing power outages as headwinds hurting production of exporters.

“Exporters have been facing challenges of foreign currency, power outages in their factories in the first half of 2019, which has in turn impacted on their export performance.

“Some customers beyond our borders will be waiting for produce and here the factory will be down and sometimes it results cancellation of orders,” he said.

Tanganda Tea finance director Henry Nemaire lamented some statutory requirements around exports saying they were weighing on exporting firms.

“Major impediments we have been experiencing are statutory, like the cap of US$400 000 on outstanding CD1s were if you reach that threshold you cannot continue to export and the SI 157 of 2018 which was done by ministry of higher education on GMO foods, already we are exporting into the European market and we already are burdened by certifications that those markets require of us,” said Mr Nemaire.