The Sunday News
ONE of the world’s largest international specialist banking and asset management groups, Investec Asset Management, has made an undertaking to channel $250 million into the country’s economy through investing in various sectors, chief among these being property.
The company’s portfolio manager, Mr Malcolm Gray, said this figure represented 10 percent of their total investment in Africa, which showed the confidence they had in the local market.
He was speaking during the third Annual Zimbabwe Pension Fund Investment Forum held in Bulawayo last week.
Mr Gray said total investment in Africa had grown from a paltry $50 million in 2005 to $2,5 billion this year.
“When you are looking at this figure we are talking of investments outside South Africa, Botswana or Swaziland, which will make you realise that we have channelled quite a significant amount just in Africa.
“We are not shy to invest but usually what we do is we take into account whether the environment is good or bad for economical injection then we move forward but we are also not shy to take challenges, a policy that we continue to abide by is that we are not political scientists we are asset managers, so our job is not to tell governments what to do but simply to invest,” said the portfolio manager.
He dismissed the assertion by most investors that they find it difficult to access governments noting that in most cases they could simply approach a government in countries they are interested in and table their proposal.
“I have held meetings with governments from some volatile parts of the continent, as I said our investments don’t come with conditions at all,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mr Gray encouraged pension funds and asset managers to develop a sense of involving workers in all their investments because at the end of the day it was the workers who own the capital which they went on to peddle around.
“The issue of pension funds or asset management is basically to do with deferred consumption, as asset managers we must have it in our minds that we are saving towards the world we want to live in, it is unfortunate that in most cases workers who provide the capital at the end of the day do not feel the benefits, therefore there is a need for us to work towards bringing the worker on board and let them feel the benefits,” said the portfolio manager.
One of the organisers of the forum, Mr Michael Ndinisa, representing MN Capital said the move by Investec to channel investment towards the Zimbabwean economy should act as a clear example to other investors that the country had potential.
“It is pleasing that Investec has made this commitment during this forum, it should show other financiers and asset managers that Zimbabwe has the potential and further if this sector is exploited well it can easily help in the economic revival of the country,” said Mr Ndinisa.
Speaking during the same function permanent secretary in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development, Mr Willard Manungo, said while pension funds were particularly focused on the provision of social security upon retirement, they also had the wholesome challenge of playing an active role in mobilising resources for economic development.
“Given that we now have Zim Asset, pension funds should come in through the provision of assets which the economy can draw resources for important development projects such as housing (which has a direct link to the contributors), agriculture, power generation (mini-hydro plants) and other critical infrastructure such as roads on a BOT or Joint Venture basis.
“Government raises funds from pensions through the prescribed assets, however, compliance to prescribed asset status is averaging one percent of total assets far below the requirements of five percent, 7,5 percent and 10 percent for short term, long term and pension funds respectively,” said Mr Manungo.
