Local car assemblers should get Govt support

Mukachana Hanyani
This pronunciation by the Minister of Finance needs to be taken into serious consideration as it is the only means in which foreign currency could be saved and possibly ameliorate the liquidity crunch which the country is reeling under.
However, such policy pronunciations without actions seem to go down the drain and the Finance Minister should take such pronunciation seriously as that has already generated debate among the public domain. It is good and prudent that once a policy is pronounced, implementation needs to be followed. Locally assembled cars would make more people, including low-income earning individuals, once they are made accessible.

Already some people are arguing that the locally assembled cars are more expensive than the imported ones and relying on the local market would not help the country satisfy its vehicle needs.

Some suggest that, the best thing that the Government could do is to help the local car assembly industry to produce cars for the local market by pouring in financial assistance so that they become cheaper than the imported ones.

The local car industry on the other hand cannot produce cars that are affordable to the public without Government support because they are into business to make money. So Government as the custodian of the Zimbabwean people should make sure that the local car assemblies are recapitalised so that they produce cars which can satisfy the local market at affordable prices.

Recent declarations by the financial institutions that they were prepared to finance the local car industry so that they are able to produce cars for the local market is a welcome move that needs Government support.

Such a move would be good for the country as it would create employment for the country and then make it possible for the public to buy cars locally without travelling to ports like Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, Durban in South Africa, Walvis Bay in Namibia and Maputo in Mozambique, etc, to collect their cars imported abroad. So Government should come in handy and help those financial institutions by offering collateral on loans that would be granted to the local car industries by the financial institutions.

Some commitments on the financial institutions which said recently that they can finance the local motor industry to assemble vehicles for sale in Zimbabwe at competitive prices, as well as provide car loans to the general public so that the people are able to buy cars without problems, are a good move which needs to be applauded as well.

Such a strong declaration by the financial institutions shows that all the people who are prepared to see the economy getting revived through the revival of the local industry are geared towards that route to be followed. So the ball is now in the Government’s court to show the public that the statement by the Minister of Finance is turned into action that would bear fruit on the economic front.

On the other hand the Willowvale Mazda Motor Industries (WMMI) chipped in saying that under optimal conditions it can sell its cheapest brand new vehicle, the Mazda 3, for less than $10 000, making it good for those in need of cars to drive better cars than some of those imported abroad.

The WMMI’s position shows that once they get recapitalisation funds they would make sure that cars are assembled and sold locally at affordable prices cutting costs for those travelling afar to bring their imported cars in the country.

As such the Finance Minister, Cde Patrick Chinamasa’s expressed misgivings over importation of poor quality second-hand vehicles, which he said was a waste of currency, should be accompanied by Government’s willingness to chip in with assistance in the financing of the local car assembly industry.

This move would be good for the local industry to be revived and once the WMMI is recapitalised, it would be able to assemble cars for the local market and also import others as a way of bringing the much-needed foreign currency to the country for continuous recapitalisation of the industry.

For that reason, Government has got the prerogative to make sure that the local car assembly industry is recapitalised so that they are able to assemble cars that can satisfy the local market. The indication by the financial institutions that they are prepared to finance the local car industry must be a challenge to Government so that it expeditiously works towards the process of coming up with a policy that requires the quick recapitalisation of the industry.

Locally assembled cars would also plug out loopholes in those evading the process of registering their cars as reports indicate that most cars roaming the Zimbabwean roads are not registered thereby prejudicing the Government the much-needed foreign currency that could be derived from registration processes.

According to the Zimbabwe National Statistical Agency, Zimbabweans imported 206 519 cars worth over $606 million between January and November 2013, but the Central Vehicle Registry said it registered 77 580 vehicles in 2013, meaning that more than half of the imported vehicles in 2013 failed to be registered.

So the facilitation by Government for the local car industry to assemble cars in the country would also be good as such situations where cars are imported and then get to be driven in the country, unregistered, would be stopped.

Cars that would be bought in the local industry would be easily monitored throughout the assemble stages up to registration procedures as they get bought by some customers. This would also mean that the government will be able to have the actual population of the cars in the country as such information would be helpful in the road maintenance and infrastructural development across the country.

Some people are also saying that car dealers in Harare are complaining about subdued prices as people are increasingly importing vehicles individually, mainly through the ports of Durban (South Africa), Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) and Walvis Bay (Namibia). So, if the local car assemble industry is revived, car dealers would have uniform prices and those complaining about subdued prices will not cry again.

People will not import cars individually as there would be no need to do so since the local industry would be well resourced to meet the local demand. Such issues of having the local car assemblies doing their work perfectly would only be possible with the help of the government coming up with a policy which helps in the revival of the industry.

While the importation of cars by individuals seeking to own such cars is not wrong, in a country like Zimbabwe which is reeling under the liquidity crunch, prioritizing locally assembled cars would be the best to do in order to save the little foreign currency which is currently circulating in the country. So the Finance Minister should follow up his statement by a policy which makes it possible for the local car industry to be revived.

Mukachana Hanyani is a Harare-based political analyst.