Online Reporter
Online Reporter
IN a sweeping move designed to ease the burden of steep fees for retailers and small businesses, the Government today unveiled a radical overhaul of the licensing regime for the wholesale and retail sectors.
The reforms, announced as part of the ongoing Ease of Doing Business initiative, promise to unshackle retailers from a tangled web of fees and bureaucratic hurdles, consolidating multiple licences into one and dramatically cutting costs.
The initiative, which follows similar successful reforms in the livestock, tourism and transport sectors, directly addresses one of the biggest complaints from business owners — the fragmentation and high cost of compliance.
One shop, One licence: The end of a bureaucratic nightmare
The cornerstone of the new policy is the consolidation of eleven different local authority licences into a single, unified shop licence.
This is a game-changer for businesses that operate multiple lines under one roof, such as a combined bakery, butchery and restaurant.
“Previously, a food factory licence alone could set a business back as much as US$2 300. Now, that entire cost, along with ten others, is swept away into one simple licence,” said the Ministry of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion in a statement.
The relief extends across the board.
Bottle stores operating within a licensed retail shop will no longer need a separate licence, while businesses dealing in both wholesale and retail will require only a single permit.
Integrated factories and retail outlets on the same premises will be covered by one licence, slashing regulatory costs.
Further, supermarkets are freed from Zimbabwe Tourism Authority licence requirements, unless they are in designated tourist areas.
Capped fees and support for SMEs
In a direct bid to support small and medium enterprises (SMEs), the Government has mandated that local authorities implement a sliding scale for licence fees, with a firm cap of US$500.
This measure is designed to ensure that the cost of doing business remains proportionate to the size of the enterprise, providing significant relief to smaller operators.
“The retail sector is one of the fastest growing sectors in Zimbabwe, and to further strengthen it, Government has moved to remove the fragmentation of licences,” the announcement read, underscoring the pro-growth agenda.
The reforms extend beyond the core retail sector, incorporating changes announced for tourism and other areas that impact business owners.
Tourism businesses, including hotels and lodges, have seen their licence fees reduced by 50 percent, also capped at a maximum of US$500.
The controversial Change of Property Use fee has been capped at US$1 000, down from highs of US$3 500.
Effluent waste management costs have been more than halved, from US$575 to US$200 per year.
Liquor licensing has been simplified, with the Liquor Licensing Board compressing all permits into one, regardless of location.
In addition, theRBZ Financial Services Licence for local businesses has been reduced to a flat fee of US$20, down from US$186.
The collective impact of these measures is expected to be profound.
By drastically reducing the upfront and recurring costs of compliance, the Government aims to stimulate entrepreneurship, encourage the formalisation of businesses and free up capital for investment in growth and job creation.
For retailers across Zimbabwe, long burdened by complex and expensive regulations, these reforms represent a long-awaited breath of fresh air.
“These measures are meant to aid in the creation of a conducive economic environment where jobs will be created, productivity improved across all sectors of the economy, achieving high growth rates through improving the ease of doing business,” Treasury said.
“Government remains committed to improving the business environment to encourage domestic and foreign investment in which Zimbabwe can become an upper middle-income society by 2030.”
