Editorial Comment: Let’s all rally behind Buy Zimbabwe campaign

It is only natural that people should take pride in their locally produced goods, particularly in the face of increased dumping of products on our market.
However, the model, fashioned along the “Proudly South African” lines, has not achieved anticipated results due to the challenges obtaining in the economy.
Although we have witnessed a rise in the availability of local products over the past two years, challenges of recapitalisation have affected the quantity and quality of local products on the market.
Most companies are still operating at an average 57 percent capacity. They are finding the going tough on the local market as they lose business to cheap imports, that seem to meet the needs, albeit temporarily, of local consumers.
A situation where Zimbabwe imported R14 billion worth of finished products from South Africa against exports of R2,5 billion last year is not sustainable.
It is akin to exporting jobs and the much-needed cash that has increasingly become elusive on the local market.
It has indeed become very difficult to wean Zimbabweans off the imports they had become so accustomed to during the 2007-2008 period when shops were empty as the effects of the hyper-inflation then corroded the economy.
The restocking that ensued in 2009 saw shops fill up with imported products. But slowly local products have found their way back into the supermarkets and departmental stores although the demand has just not been there for most of the products.
Local products could now be of better quality but they are considered more expensive hence the everyday customer is easily enticed by the cheaper imports.
Local firms have had to contend with high production costs due to high costs of borrowing and astronomical overhead costs and this is reflected in their pricing structures.
This has impeded the adoption of the buy Zimbabwe campaign, which most Zimbabweans strongly feel can only be embraced at their own peril unless prices come down.
This is the war that local producers are faced with.
Liquidity challenges in the economy have meant that firms are borrowing at high interest rates while the short repayment periods are deterrent.
Only through affordable financing models and more realistic electricity and water tariffs can local firms compete effectively with cheaper imports that continue to find their way onto the local market.
However, it has emerged that some of the imported goods may appear cheap but they are expensive in the long run given their short shelf life and durability.
This is one fact that should change consumers’  buying trends but the low disposable incomes have meant that ordinary Zimbabweans will continue to scramble for the cheaper imports while leaving the local and better quality products to the few wealthy customers and those particular individuals that do not compromise on quality.
But these are only a few.
It is in this regard that the Buy Zimbabwe campaign needs to be more aggressive in coming up with measures to lure consumers to buy local stuff.
The Proudly South African concept launched in 2001 achieved a 71 percent brand awareness rate within two years. This could be too ambitious in Zimbabwe’s case but progress can be achieved as the economy becomes more liquid.
The South African concept was modelled around the “Made in Australia” campaign that achieved rapid growth.
However, the differences in the economic terrain of the three countries largely determine the response to the initiatives.
The Buy Zimbabwe concept needs buy-in by business organisations such as the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries, the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce and the Standards Association of Zimbabwe.
Awareness efforts can lay the groundwork for a successful adoption of the policy as the present economic challenges soften.
However, promoters of the concept must be applauded for having the temerity to launch the programme at a time when consumer trends were going in the opposite direction.
Firms now need to do their best to reduce production costs and hence prices, while also ensuring their products and services are of a high quality.
Programmes initiated by the Buy Zimbabwe promoters, such as a deal with Willowvale Mazda Motor Industries and a bank under which customers can purchase cars under a two-year scheme instead of cash, have the potential to significantly impact demand for local goods and services.
Such initiatives will certainly promote the purchase of local brand new cars as opposed to importing second-hand cars.
If this concept is replicated in other sectors we will see more people buying local goods for the benefit of the economy.
The equation is easy to understand; that buying more local goods results in the creation of more jobs, more wealth and a more liquid economy as money will be circulating within the country.
The sacrifice, at this stage, is necessary for medium to long term benefits.
Companies will also make more profits and retool, to the consumer’s benefit.
Let us all rally behind the Buy Zimbabwe campaign and help rebuild local industry and the economy at large.