Take advantage of Dimaf to recapitalise

releasing the promised money under the Distressed Industries and Marginalised Areas Fund (Dimaf) and what is surprising now is that the same business community that has been complaining about the delays in releasing the fund is now taking its time to submit applications to CABS which is disbursing the fund.
According to the Finance Secretary, Mr Willard Manungo, only 28 companies have so far applied to benefit from the fund despite the fact that the Ministry has short-listed 58 companies. He said the 28 companies were set to share $15 million of the fund and already $2 million had been disbursed. The delays in submitting applications is very disappointing especially to members of the “Let Bulawayo Survive Campaign” inter-ministerial taskforce chaired by Minister of Industry and Commerce, Professor Welshman Ncube who worked tirelessly to convince Government to avail this special facility to assist ailing companies in Bulawayo.
The Bulawayo community is equally disappointed because it had pinned its hopes on companies accessing this fund to recapitalise and boost production. More than 80 companies in the city had either relocated or closed down leaving more than 20 000 workers jobless and these workers are looking forward to their companies re-opening after accessing funding from Dimaf.
After announcement by the Government that the fund had been released, CABS was supposed to be overwhelmed by applications from the different companies. We in fact expected far more than the 58 short-listed companies to have applied for the funding by now.
The funding should have by now been exhausted given the fact that companies urgently need money for recapitalisation. Business advocacy bodies such as the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries and the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce should be playing a leading role in mobilising and assisting companies to access the fund. Bulawayo companies should not cry foul if the fund is opened up to all distressed companies in the country.
Government had understood that while the liquidity crunch is affecting almost all companies in the country, the case of Bulawayo companies was peculiar, hence the decision to avail this facility specifically for companies in the city. The same companies that are reluctant to apply for funding from Dimaf have always complained about marginalisation. What is coming out clear is that the business community in Bulawayo is lagging behind not because of the so called marginalisation but because it is not proactive. We want to once again urge companies to take advantage of Dimaf to recapitalise in order to boost production so that Bulawayo can once again regain its status as the country’s industrial hub.
Residents of Bulawayo are desperate for employment so closed companies should open as soon as possible now that the funding is available. We envisage a situation whereby CABS within a short period of time informs Government that funding has run out and it needs more to meet the high demand for loans.