Online Reporter
Martin Kadzere
Masvingo Province presents significant opportunities for pension funds to invest in high-value industries, including agriculture, energy, mining, tourism and infrastructure development, a senior Government official has said.
The Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution for Masvingo, Ezra Chadzamira, said this at the Zimbabwe Association of Pension Funds (ZAPF) annual convention last week.
Minister Chadzamira’s presentation detailed how Masvingo, which boasts over 54 percent of the country’s total water reserves, is strategically positioned to be a major economic hub, particularly in value addition.
In 2024, Masvingo Province’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was ZiG4,95 billion, making it the sixth-largest contributor to the national GDP.
According to the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (Zimstat, the province’s key economic drivers were agriculture, forestry and fishing as well as the manufacturing industry, which contributed 14,06 percent and 13,36 percent of the provincial GDP, respectively.
The province is seeking partners to finance large-scale projects, including a new ethanol plant in Mwenezi District and the establishment of solar farms across Gutu, Chivi, Zaka and other districts.
The investment proposition is anchored on several key value chains designed to boost local production and exports.
In the energy sector, the focus is on constructing mini-hydro power stations at Manyuchi Dam and Siya Dam to alleviate national power shortages.
The agricultural sector offers significant opportunities through the development of beef value chains, specifically tanneries and abattoirs in Mwenezi and Chiredzi – to capitalise on the province’s herd of over 1,1 million cattle and address a national shortage in leather products.
