Econet clinches top supply chain award

Sunday Mail Reporter

ECONET WIRELESS ZIMBABWE was awarded the Procurement Digital Transformation Award (Platinum) at the 2024 Supply Chain Excellence Awards in Harare last week in recognition of its “innovative and transformative approach” to procurement and supply chain management.

The recognition was conferred by the Institute of Supply Chain Management of Zimbabwe.

Econet’s chief supply chain officer Mrs Sharon Marufu also received the Outstanding Woman in Supply Chain Award (Platinum) at the same event.

It is believed that the telecommunication company’s procurement and supply chain strategy – built around the key pillars of collaboration, digital transformation, diversity and cost-effectiveness – has been instrumental in ensuring that it remains competitive in the face of the challenging economic operating environment, while empowering marginalised and previously excluded groups.

“Sustainability is at the heart of our strategy,” said Mrs Marufu after receiving the awards.

“We are committed to incorporating sustainability into every aspect of our supply chain operations to minimise our environmental footprint while maximising the social and economic benefits related to our business activities.”

In its 2024 financial year, Econet’s procurement spend reached $1,5 trillion, distributed across more than 300 suppliers.

Notably, 291 of these suppliers are local businesses.

The company’s major spending categories include network equipment, IT hardware and software, fuel and security services.

A standout feature of Econet’s procurement strategy is its Supplier Diversity and Inclusivity Programme, which seeks to empower marginalised groups by increasing the procurement of goods and services from minority and women-owned businesses.

The groups include small and medium enterprises (SMEs), women-owned businesses, youth-led enterprises and businesses owned by people with disabilities.

“Our objective is to diversify our supply chain by increasing our spend with diverse supplier groups,” Mrs Marufu said.

“Currently, 11 percent of our procurement expenditure is directed towards diverse suppliers, and we aim to raise that to 15 percent by the next reporting period.”

In April last year, Econet formally signed a partnership agreement with the Women-Owned Business Trust, an organisation that helps female entrepreneurs access markets and scale their businesses.

The collaboration has been instrumental in driving Econet’s procurement expenditure with women-owned businesses, which has grown by over 1 000 percent.

As part of its effort to drive diversity, Econet has participated in and part-sponsored four Meet the Buyer events, where women-owned businesses showcased their product offerings to the company’s procurement team and other businesses.