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Tawanda Musarurwa in VICTORIA FALLS
Investors from India looking to invest in Zimbabwe are increasingly hopeful that the fiscal and monetary policy changes that have been implemented by the Government will provide impetus to business deals between the two countries that had stalled.
Last November, Indian Vice president Shri Venkaiah Naidu, visited Zimbabwe and six business deals were agreed upon between Zimbabwe and India, but due to foreign currency shortages and liquidity issues the implementation of the deals had failed to make much headway.
Addressing delegates at the India-Japanese Business Section at the ongoing Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI) Congress and International Conference in Victoria Falls, India’s ambassador to Zimbabwe Rungsung Masakui, said they have been impressed by the ongoing reforms.
“Partners from India have not given up on these ventures and they continue to look for an appropriate time to implement them.
“Now that Government has made fiscal and monetary corrections, I hope that not only these MOUs will be implemented but more business from India, Japan and other countries will come in,” he said.
“What I am saying might sound unrealistic, but statistics available at Zimbabwe Investment Authority speaks loud at least for India. Business investment registrations with ZIA has over the last two years gone up.”
Official figures show that Indian business registrations at ZIA stood at 35 last year, and as at June 2019 they were at 42. This was from just 13 registrations in 2017, and only 7 in 2016.
The November 2018 visit by the Indian Vice president saw the signing of the following agreements: Co-operation in the fields of Geology, Mining and Mineral Resources; Action Plan on Information and Communication Technology; Cooperation in the field of Traditional Medicine and Homeopathy; Cooperation in the field of Arts, Culture and heritage; Cooperation and Collaboration on Broadcasting; Visa Waiver Agreement for holder of diplomatic and official/service passports.
Zimbabwe is currently carrying out a number of economic structural reforms under the short-term Transitional Stabilisation Programme (TSP), which has the potential to transform the country’s economy if they are fully implemented.
TSP, which is being driven by Finance and Economic Development Minister, Professor Mthuli Ncube, is aimed at transforming Zimbabwe into a middle-income class by the year 2030.
The World Bank has already ranked the country as a low middle income state.
The Indian ambassador to Zimbabwe said economic reforms are typically fraught and business should brace up for short-term pain.
“Government is making all efforts to correct the course of the economy. Therefore businesses and people need to brace themselves in the coming days as any corrective measures normally hurt. Such efforts, however, need to be sincere. India has gone through such times in the early 1990s where severe austerity measures were imposed on ourselves for a few years. But we managed to emerge from that hardship,” he said.
Last November India also announced a US$310 million Line of Credit for up-gradation of Hwange Thermal Power Station; an additional US$23 million Line of Credit for the rehabilitation of Bulawayo Thermal Power Plant and an additional US$19, 5 million Line of Credit for Deka Pumping and river Water Intake System.
Other commitments included a grant for construction of Mahatma Gandhi Convention Centre; a US$2, 93 million grant for the upgrading of the INDO-Zim Technology Centre, and a gifting of 10 Indian-made Ambulances to Zimbabwe, lifesaving drugs and deputation of experts in five specialised areas.
Bongani Ndlovu