Masvingo sets US$10bn target

2030 target.
This came out of a recent CEO Africa Roundtable business breakfast meeting hosted in Masvingo by KM Financial Solutions.
The CEO Africa Roundtable is a private sector dialogue which is designed to bring together decision makers and destiny shapers in Zimbabwe to deliberate on strategic economic issues which will feed into the process of attaining a US$100 billion economy for Zimbabwe by 2030 among other issues.
Minister for Tourism and Hospitality Industry Engineer Walter Mzembi officially opened the event run under the theme “Towards a US$100 Billion Economy for Zimbabwe by 2030: Implications For Masvingo Province”.
Minister Mzembi pledged his commitment to work within the province in transforming it into a US$10 billion economy.
He implored the people of Masvingo to make time and engage in non-partisan meetings whose sole purpose would be to plan economically transformative programmes for the region.
He noted the attributes of the province, including its natural endowments in the mining and agriculture sectors, tourism within the conservancies and new opportunities such as religious tourism, which is expected to be triggered by the Mbungu Shrine construction.
There are also a number of major projects underway in the province including the Tokwe-Mkosi dam, where construction has resumed.
It has the capacity of supporting more than 3 million inhabitants through irrigation of around 28 000 hectares of land, hence the need to unlock and give attention to such projects.
Although appreciating Government efforts in releasing US$30 million for the project in the current fiscal year, Minister Mzembi added that there was need for increased capitalisation of the many projects in the province.
He added that there is need for Members of Parliament and other influential individuals who originate from Masvingo province across the political divide to meet the local leadership to come up with a roadmap for development.
Deputy Minister Tongai Matutu said there was need to rehabilitate the cattle stock and support small scale sugar cane farmers as the crop gives both income and employment creation.
He also called for the empowerment of the youth and women as catalysts for the growth of a US$100 billion economy hence the need to engage and integrate them into the mainstream economy. Masvingo province covers 14,5 percent of Zimbabwe’s total area with a population of about 1,4 million people.
The province is also endowed with various mineral resources including lithium, asbestos, and gold.