Tap into Masvingo riches, Hungwe urges investors

Walter Mswazie Masvingo Correspondent
Masvingo Provincial Affairs Minister Senator Josaya Hungwe says the province is open for business and exhorted foreign investors to tap into the vast economic opportunities available. Addressing participants at a Masvingo provincial nation branding interactive fundraising dinner at a local hotel last week, Sen Hungwe said Masvingo was awash with business opportunities in areas such as agriculture and mining.

The fundraising dinner was part of the province’s 100 day plan in sync with President Mnangagwa’s “Zimbabwe is Open for Business” mantra.

Sen Hungwe said Masvingo was strategically located to become the southern region’s economic hub because of its links with the rest of the country through the road and rail network.
“Masvingo is open for business,” he said.

“The province is strategically positioned and that is ideal for investment.
“It is equidistant to all major towns in the country and located along the major highway to South Africa, Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique and Botswana.

“We have adopted the ease of doing business aspect under the new economic trajectory pronounced by President Mnangagwa,” said Sen Hungwe.

He said the province had potential to be the breadbasket of the nation if underutilised water bodies in the region were harnessed for irrigation.

Sen Hungwe said Masvingo was home to the biggest inland dam in the country, Tokwe-Mukosi and plans were afoot to embark on a massive agricultural revolution, where 25 000 hectares of land would be opened for irrigation using water from the dam.
He said the commissioning of Tokwe-Mukosi last year has opened flood gates of economic opportunities in sectors such as tourism, wildlife management and fisheries.

“We have what it takes to be the economic hub of the nation and contribute immensely to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product.
“The 1,8 billion cubic metres-capacity Tokwe-Mukosi Dam, the biggest in the country so far, will be cog in the province’s economic wheel,’’ said Senator Hungwe.

Speaking at the event, US-based academic and prolific writer Professor Ken Mufuka hailed the province’s marketing and investment promotion efforts.
He offered to assist academics with scholarships to study in the US under the Ken Mufuka Foundation.