Online Reporter
Nelson Gahadza
Zimpapers Business Hub
The Government is keen to attract investors to tap into the country’s mineral resources, particularly the gold sector, which accounts for a significant portion of the country’s foreign currency inflows, a business executive has said.
CBZ Holdings chairman, Mr Luxon Zembe, speaking at the Zimbabwe Gold Investment Conference 2025 in Harare, also highlighted the importance of moving into the value chain, rather than just extracting raw materials.
“We need to move into the value chain rather than just extracting raw materials and the benefits will accrue to the economy,” he said.
Gold is Zimbabwe’s largest export, consistently generating a significant portion of the country’s foreign currency earnings.
It is the biggest contributor to export revenue and recent data shows it accounts for over 50 percent of total exports.
Mr Zembe said Zimbabwe has been touted as a country with vast mineral resources, boasting over 40 different types of minerals, including gold, platinum, diamonds, coal and lithium, indicating the country’s potential, and saying it is a unique opportunity for investors and miners.
“Zimbabwe is endowed with significant mineral wealth, with over 4 000 recorded gold deposits and an estimated 13 million tonnes of gold reserves.
“We are one of those countries in this world that is endowed with a lot of potential and well-suited to support the extraction of the minerals,” he said.
Mr Zembe also noted that the Government is committed to creating a conducive business environment, with a focus on relative peace and stability.
He said stability and predictability are attractive features for investors, and the Government is committed to ensuring the current stability is sustained.
“The Government is committed to supporting the mining sector with a focus on creating a conducive business environment and has implemented policies to encourage investment, including tax incentives and streamlined licensing procedures,” he said.
At the conference, various speakers maintained that gold remains a key mineral that can drive economies but requires policy and financial support as well as significant investments in exploration.
Dr Godknows Njowa, Principal Mining Engineer at EY Parthenon, said Zimbabwe needs to spend enough on investments in exploration to ensure investors have the actual information on resources, which will determine the size of investments.
“What we are missing, especially looking at the gold industry, is the price, which is now at US$4 200 an ounce. We are losing in the sense that we could actually double the current production if we spent money on exploration,” he said.
Mr Mabvuto Chipata, of Zambia, and chief advisor of 5Napier, said governments should assist with financing and equipping small-scale miners to conduct exploration.
He also said governments should use gold revenues to diversify economies and reduce overdependence on commodity extraction.
Victoria Falls Stock Exchange (VFEX) Head, Mr Robert Mubaiwa, said for mining companies, getting listed means accountability in the way you conduct business.
“One of the advantages of getting on a public platform is, essentially, you are accountable in terms of the way you want to conduct yourself in the community.
“It’s important that you have to be able to start making decisions, and it will help to also make sure that when you start making decisions, you are being proactive,” he said.
Mr Mubaiwa said VFEX currently has a pipeline project that would require funding; hence, there is a need for a model that identifies such projects.
