The Sunday News
GOVERNMENT is yet to settle a debt of about $200 000 it accrued over nine years for the supply of vital medicines to the country’s health institutions by leading pharmaceutical manufacturer and distributor, Datlabs.
Speaking during a tour of the company’s plant in Bulawayo by a team of Southern Africa Development Community Ministers of Finance and Reserve Bank Governors from the region on Tuesday the company’s managing director, Mr Todd Moyo, said Government was yet to settle a debt it accrued in 2006 for the supply of parenterals.
Parenteral is the medicine taken into the body or administered in a manner other than through the digestive tract, as by intravenous or intramuscular injection.
“The Government is actually owing us about $175 000 dating back from 2006.
The debt arose from a tender we won to supply Government institutions with large volume of parenterals where government would provide the required foreign currency at the official exchange to procure raw materials (this was during the hyper-inflation period),” he said.
He said the company used to source foreign currency at open market rates to procure raw materials to ensure there was uninterrupted supply of the vital medicines to hospitals with the hope that Government would reimburse as per tender conditions.
Mr Moyo said the company was battling to raise working capital and debt settlement would go a long way in improving its capacity utilisation.
“Most of our raw materials are imported and most suppliers cite country risk as the reason for not wanting to grant us credit. We therefore, have to pay cash up front for imported raw materials so this money would have indeed made a difference to our operations,” he said.
Industry and Commerce Deputy Minister, Cde Chiratidzo Iris Mabuwa, acknowledged that Government owed Datlabs but was quick to say efforts were being made to settle the debt.
In another development, Mr Moyo said the company was impressed with the performance of its Camphacare cream which was introduced into the market two years ago.
Datlabs introduced its Camphacare cream after its licence for the manufacture of Ingram’s Camphor Cream was terminated by South African’s Tiger Brands.
“Camphacare is coming up as we increase awareness of the brand among the Zimbabwean populace. The biggest challenge we have been facing is that of the main competitor undercutting us on price yet in all the surrounding countries they are selling the product for more or less double the Zimbabwean price. We are making inroads as the local market rates the quality of our product superior to the imported one,” he said.
