The Sunday News
Munyaradzi Musiiwa, Midlands Bureau
THE National Investment Policy being crafted by Government as part of efforts to advance policy reforms to make the investment environment more conducive has the potential to make the country an economic powerhouse within the region, an official has said.
Macro-Economic Planning and Investment Promotion Permanent Secretary Dr Judith Kateera said the Government was making strides in advancing policy reforms meant to make the investment environment more conducive through One Stop Shop Investment Centre, the Special Economic Zones and the Ease of Doing Business Reforms and the National Investment Policy.
She was speaking in Gweru last week during a consultative meeting with businesspeople to gather input on the policy.
Dr Kateera said the National Investment Policy will look at how to attract investment, what sort of investment is needed in the country, image promotion, locational incentives, ease of entry in order to establish a business, procedural barriers and sequencing of reforms.
“The Government has therefore made strides in advancing policy reforms meant to make the investment environment more conducive. These include the One Stop Shop Investment Centre, the Special Economic Zones and the Ease of Doing Business Reforms. Further reforms shall be implemented in the form of the National Investment Policy, Special Economic Zones Policy and Harmonisation of Investment Laws,” said Dr Kateera.
Dr Kateera said investors had seen great potential in Zimbabwe.
“Zimbabwe has vast potential that can make it an economic powerhouse within the region and beyond. Despite this potential, the country’s economic growth trajectory has witnessed a continual downward trend ranging from a post-dollarisation peak of 11,4 percent in 2011 to as low as 0,4 percent in 2016. This has been due to the multiplicity of challenges that the country is facing which include declining production levels, high costs of production, company closures and high unemployment.
On the investment side, foreign direct inflows have on average been below the half a billion dollar mark with a peak of US$545 million in 2014 which however, declined to US$319 million in 2016,” she said.
Dr Kateera said the Government had sought to address these challenges through the country’s economic blue-prints, the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation (Zim Asset) and the 10-Point Plan.
“Key in these blueprints is the importance of both domestic and foreign direct investment towards economic growth, development and transformation.
Also, key to this economic growth, development and transformation is the country’s policy framework which can either advance or hinder economic activity,” she said.
