The Sunday News
Charity Chikara, Sunday News Reporter
THE Government is championing a number of rural industrialisation projects and utilising local resources to turn around specific areas.
Industry and Commerce Minister, Dr Sekai Nzenza, in a speech read on her behalf by the Ministry Permanent Secretary Dr Mavis Sibanda during a Parliamentary Portfolio Committee meeting in Bulawayo last week said there were a number of projects underway in rural areas in a bid to improve rural economies.
“Current projects include Dorowa Minerals Plant for phosphorous production and G and W for limestone processing, among other industries.
These developments complement efforts to create fully functional value chains and improved standards of living for people living in marginalised areas,” she said.
Dr Nzenza said rural industrialisation was largely supported by the Economic Empowerment Policy which seeks to transform the Community Share Ownership Trust into a sustainable profit making enterprise to promote the development of rural communities in line with the devolution initiative.
“The rural industrialisation thrust is also being augmented by the policy which seeks to transform the Community Share Ownership Trust into sustainable profit making enterprises to promote the development of rural communities in line with the devolution initiative.
Economic empowerment of the country’s citizens is recognised as key to the achievement of equitable economic development,” she said.
She added that the ministry was working on making sure that people benefit from the readily available market that can accommodate Zimbabwean products.
“Zimbabwe is finalising its tariff offer under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). I believe there is a huge opportunity for our country to benefit from the AfCFTA, which offers a market of more than 1.2 billion people.
In order to maximise our benefits, we need to ensure increased competitiveness of our local industry through improving the ease of doing business and reducing the cost of doing business,” she said.
Producers and service providers were also urged to prioritise and uphold consumer rights by providing quality goods and services.
“The Ministry has come up with the National Quality Policy, which seeks to address the challenges that have existed from the silo development of quality programmes by ministries, regulators and agencies.
“The National Quality Policy (NQP) is expected to protect the safety and health of the consumer and the environment as both locally manufactured and imported goods and services are consumed on the local market,” she said.
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