War of words erupts over $40 million fund

Senior Zanu-PF leaders drawn from the three provinces of Matabeleland North, Bulawayo, and Matabeleland South met at Elangeni Training Centre on Sunday where they called for urgent measures to bring the $40 million “stalemate” to finality. A majority of industries in the city are yet to benefit from the fund, which was launched last October.
In a telephone interview yesterday, Zanu-PF Secretary for Economic Affairs Dr Obert Mpofu said people from the region had lost patience with the $40 million Distressed Industries and Marginalised Areas Fund (Dimaf).

“The issue of Dimaf is a major concern to many stakeholders and people are losing patience over its disbursement. Those who want to access it have been given a long list of conditions that normal companies cannot meet,” said Dr Mpofu who is also the Minister of Mines and Mining Development.
“People from the region feel this was a political gimmick by the people who are implementing it. The facility has become a mockery because it is frustrating people.
“There is a need for the Government to intervene and ensure that the facility has friendly conditions that would promote the resuscitation of companies without asking for information that cannot be availed.”

Insiza Senator and Deputy President of the Senate Naison Khutshwekhaya Ndlovu said it was high time that President Mugabe intervened over the Dimaf issue and bring sanity to the facility.

“We are told that Dimaf is now a national fund and no longer for Bulawayo alone yet we have complained of distressed industries in the city. It seems the Ministry of Finance has now turned the issue into a political one.
“President Mugabe is the only person who can intervene in this issue as he did when the facility was introduced. The President should use his powers in order to bring change to this matter,” said Senator Ndlovu.

Zanu-PF Deputy Secretary for Women’s Affairs Cde Eunice Sandi Moyo said the disbursement of Dimaf was still shrouded in mystery five months after its launch.
She challenged the responsible ministries to furnish the beneficiaries with adequate information in order to achieve the intended goals.
“As far as I am concerned there is no transparency in this fund. We do not know the criteria used in giving the funds. It seems the whole arrangement has been flawed from the start.

“The conditions for accessing the funds are also difficult. Ministries should have looked at these things from the start. The Government should not have allowed Old Mutual to decide the conditions alone,” said Cde Sandi Moyo.
She said there was no reason for the bank to demand collateral on companies that were already on their knees.

Cde Sandi Moyo challenged the political leadership from the region to work together regardless of political affiliation towards achieving a common goal.
Industry and Commerce Minister Professor Welshman Ncube, however, said there was nothing political about the funding facility.

He said Cabinet was up to date about all the developments about the fund and that he would present another report next week.

“There is absolute transparency in this process. I presented the reports to Cabinet three weeks ago about the three approved companies and the more than 20 whose applications were rejected and others that did not bother to apply.
“Cabinet said it was unhappy with the report and directed me to engage CABS to revise the conditions. I will report back to Cabinet next week,” said Prof Ncube.

“There is nothing political about this issue. We have communicated with the short-listed companies and made it clear that we give priority to strategic companies that can boost industrial growth faster.”
The Dimaf loan scheme has been mired  in controversy since its launch in October   last year.

Bulawayo has recorded increased job losses over the past years and most businesses are  pinning their hopes on the fund to resuscitate the industry.
The business community has of late been  calling for the publication of companies that  would benefit from Dimaf to avoid abuse of the fund.
They also expressed concern over the criteria used in awarding the loans, saying it had a bias towards big companies.
Recently Prof Ncube said the fund would be extended to the Midlands and Manicaland provinces.