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Perspective Stephen Mpofu
All things considered, the economic trough through which Zimbabwe is dawdling right now — thanks mainly to illegal Western sanctions — is giving off the downturn slowly but surely giving way to an exciting new dawn breaking and with foresighted birds poised to pounce on the fat worms in terms of lucrative investment opportunities.
Ask Africa’s consummate patriot and Zimbabwe’s new-found friend, Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote about the unfolding new economic era for Zimbabwe and he will eagerly post a loud billboard affirming the unfolding reality.
Ask also the Chinese, the Russians, Indians and other business-minded people in the East and they will surely chorus their endorsement of Zimbabwe’s becoming the new destination to which to troop with purse strings loosened to pour in their hard-earned money and reap handsome dividends in return.
True, this country might be small in size alright when compared with lumbering giants elsewhere pushing their weight with impunity against countries that they frown upon as midgets, yet by virtue of its mineral content Zimbabwe is mightily huge. It boasts of more than 68 minerals, with gold stealing the limelight and with in tow chrome, iron, copper, coal and asbestos.
Some of these minerals might have been depleted over the years by being carted off by colonialists to build palaces in their native countries. But any mortal loss in this regard has been made good by the discovery of platinum and diamonds as the pretty new brides beckoning to the potential foreign bridegrooms to come to Zimbabwe bearing their capital for betrothal that will surely make the foreign investors hug themselves for taking a wise decision.
Following the Zimbabwean government’s impassioned call for foreign direct investment to resuscitate our sanctions-beleaguered economy, the Dangote Group did not waste time in responding to the invitation and now has landed licences from the Zimbabwe Investment Authority for projects in cement manufacturing, coal mining and an energy or power plant worth $1,2 billion.
That Dangote ran to Zimbabwe, as it were, is proof enough of his knowledge of a good investment climate that exists in the country and which should be read by all as an all-clear signal for any doubting Thomas in other continents to make a beeline to this country before prime investment areas are snapped up by early birds.
Zimbabwe’s all-weather friends from the East who have already visited this country to identify areas of possible investment can be said to be making a logical sequel to the moral and material support with which they supported our armed revolution.
By walking along with our gallant sons and daughters during the dark days of the armed struggle, the friends from the East built bridges into the new state of Zimbabwe and are now merely crossing those bridges to continue to further the revolution for mutual benefits with their investment hosts.
This pen, and no doubt other patriotic Zimbabweans entreat potential foreign investors not to be scared away by rhetorical diarrhoea spread by imperialist enemies of Zanu-PF, the ruling party, and its government and in particular the sitting President, with the help of the enemy’s proxy scarecrows on the darker side of the political divide — people with no positive contributions to make to this country’s political maturation as well as to its economic growth, underpinned by peace and stability.
As for those still hell-bent on exacting regime change, they will undoubtedly remain perched on the fence for eternity since that heinous project has failed to materialise and their hope for succession at State House by someone they can manipulate for their hegemonic designs is also growing forlorn by the day.
What all this means for potential foreign investors is that they should disabuse themselves of any idea at all of bringing their capital to this country on nothing but their own conditions. That will not wash with either the government of this country or with the general population. The clear bottom line here is that a win-win situation stands to guarantee successful business partnerships between Zimbabwe and foreign investors.
It also stands to reason that Zimbabweans must not play their cards from the chest. In other words, we, the citizens of this country, should not surreptitiously engage in or support any form of corruption whatsoever in any government or private structures as such conduct is wont eventually to be known with the result that investors will be scared away.
The good thing, however, is that the high literacy and hard work for which Zimbabweans are known should act as a feather in the cap of foreign investment in driving our economy to cherished goals.
But while the economy struggles agriculture which has for years served as the solid cornerstone of the economy should be given all the support it deserves, particularly now with the El Nino phenomenon caused by warm waters in the eastern Pacific Ocean as trade winds reverse or change their direction with the resultant heat affecting African and other vulnerable countries.
El Nino is a climate cycle in the Pacific Ocean with a global impact on weather patterns such as the droughts experienced in this part of the African continent with Zimbabwe reeling under the onslaught as food shortages stalk many families.
Government authorities and farming experts have already been calling on farmers to plant short season, drought resistant seed varieties as a way of mitigating the drought conditions.
Talk shows on what type of drought-resistant seeds to plant and on the need for people to sell some of their livestock to forestall losses to drought as pastures and water reservoirs dry up under the onslaught of the heat may be alright but cognisance should be taken of the fact that not all peasants out there in the communal lands where the majority of our people live possess television sets, not to mention radio receivers to access the advice given by experts from their air-conditioned offices in urban areas.
In this pen’s humble estimation, the unfolding situation out there in the countryside is so grave that arm-chair advisors should exchange their designer suits and shinny shoes for rough terrain-friendly attire and go out there to commune with the people about survival ways out of the El Nino imbroglio resulting from warm waters in the Eastern Pacific Ocean as a result of trade winds changing or reversing their direction.
Ministers and other members of parliament along with extension officers should, in the absence of general elections only due in 2018 with campaign rallies aplenty, hold food rallies with the villagers in every corner of the country educating them on how to beat the effects of recurrent droughts or incessant floods.
Doing so by remote control from their cushy offices in urban centres will not guarantee the people’s survival as well as that of their livestock with food stocks dwindling ever so seriously and with money so scarce to fill silos and village granaries with food from countries that will have produced surplus grain for export.
When this happens it will be said after we cross the bridge and in memory of the late political stalwart, Maurice Nyagumbo, that the Zimbabwean leaders were “always with the people” — a vote of confidence in their continued stewardship of the masses.
Online Reporter