CZI seeks US$2bn

raise at least US$2 billion for the private sector in Zimbabwe.
CZI president Mr Joseph Kanyekanye told members at an annual general meeting they would soon undertake a mission to Dubai to canvas for funding in a bid to salvage the struggling private sector.
“Vice President Joice Mujuru would lead a delegation to Dubai next month and the fund-raising will adopt a two-pronged approach where funds can be revolving through banks and specific projects that Dubai is interested in investing in, mainly in food security,” said Mr Kanyekanye.
They were also negotiating with relevant local authorities for pension funds to provide at least US$50 million every month to the private sector.
This deal would result in pension funds pumping at least US$600 million into the private sector annually, more than Zimbabwe is receiving from regional and international financiers.
He said it was “saddening” that the country was queueing for little monies from other countries and banks while available local resources could be mobilised for the benefit of private sector growth.
“We are tired of queueing for little money for a long time and at the end we do not get anything. It is high time we unlocked local solutions and get results,” he said.
“Pension funds get money from contributions by employers and employees and that in itself means that the same funds can be used to help the companies grow.
“Negotiations are in progress with relevant ministries and what needs to be done is to come up with prescribed assets and to make sure that the prevailing interest rates and tenure are affordable.
“We have these local resources, let’s use them to develop our industry.”
Zimbabwe is still struggling to unlock the US$70 million Botswana facility and a substantial one from South Africa.
The Botswana facility, agreed to early this year, has suffered bureaucratic delays in both countries.
Mr Kanyekanye said the cost of money was one of the reasons companies were failing to increase production and operate competitively.
He said the CZI’s tour of all provinces had revealed that some companies were under judicial management or in voluntary liquidation due to lack of funding.
The local banking sector was reluctant to advance loans to the private sector due to liquidity constraints emanating from the global financial crisis.
The banking sector had also failed to attract meaningful external lines of credit, resulting in local money being very expensive due to perceived “high country risk”.