The Sunday News
IT takes 53 days, requires seven documents from various departments and costs more than $4 000 to transport one container from Zimbabwe to the sea port, especially Durban, a situation which is hurting the country’s export drive, figures from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe show.
The figures availed to captains of industry during the central bank’s Exchange Control Stakeholders Awareness Workshop in Bulawayo on Friday show that as such Zimbabwe is ranked 180 out of 189 countries in terms of trading across the borders.
In contrast, the data shows, to export in Singapore which is ranked top, it only requires three documents, three days at a cost of $460 to move a container to the sea. In the top ranked African country Mauritius, it takes just four documents, 10 days at a cost of $675 per container. However, it is the Zimbabwe scenario which exporters noted that it was curtailing the growth of exports.
“For every day lost, the cost of exporting increases by at least two percent and in some cases the goods end up losing value. There are also high chances that goods may be damaged, and in the worst case scenario, some orders may even be cancelled while the exporter is still trying to move the goods,” said an economist with a financial institution in Harare.
According to the data from the central bank, exporters in Zimbabwe would need to get a Bill of lading, Commercial Export Invoice, Customs Declarations (Form 21), Exchange Control Form CD1, Parking list, Pre-shipment Inspection clean report on findings and Transit entry documents.
The data shows that preparing all these documents takes exporters more than a month (33 days) at a cost of $300. It takes an additional four days for customs clearance and inspections at a cost of $180, another four days for ports and terminal handling at a cost of $285 while inland transportation and handling will take 12 days resulting in a total of 53 days at a total cost of $4 265.
“The delays in processing of export documents increase warehouse, storage costs and demurrage charges,” noted the central bank.
“Such delays also affect the quality of goods and or lead to cancellation of orders.”
These export related costs are also used when international institutions rank countries on the Ease of Doing Business index.
According to World Bank Group Doing Business Report for 2015, Zimbabwe is ranked 171 out of 189 on the overall ease of doing business.
Zimbabwe Investment Authority chief executive officer Mr Richard Mubaiwa said his organisation was making a raft of reforms and engaging various relevant stakeholders to ensure the country’s Ease of Doing Business rankings improve.
Mr Mubaiwa said investors look at the country’s ratings before they invest in a particular country hence they were working to improve the country’s investment climate.
“Our doing business rankings are very low. We consider (rankings) them to be quite important as investors look at such rankings. It is important that we work towards improving business rankings. We want to be in the top 100,” he said.
Mr Mubaiwa said his organisation had held a series of meetings facilitated by the World Bank together with the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development to discuss some of the issues that were worrying investors.
He said ZIA would submit reforms carried out to the World Bank before the 1 June deadline, so they would feature in the next report in 2016.
Mr Mubaiwa said the establishment of the one stop centre for investment was a noble idea set to improve these rankings.
“We are also part of the e-government framework that is being developed,” said Mr Mubaiwa.
ZIA chairman Mr Nigel Chanakira it was ZIA’s mandate to ensure that some of the concerns were addressed soon to improve the image of the country.
“ZIA in conjunction with the office of the President and Cabinet, the World Bank and International Finance Corporation have been working very, very hard to improve the rankings in terms of the doing business in Zimbabwe ratings,” said Mr Chanakira.
Because of some of these issues, Mr Chanaikira said, Foreign Direct Investments had been low.
“If you look at nations that surround us some have topped up to about $6 billion in terms of investment flows like South Africa, Zambia, and Mozambique but Zimbabwe is at just $400 million. Last year alone in terms of investment inquiries we got a total of $1,1 billion,” Mr Chanakira said. A local businessman and legal practitioner Mr Josphat Tshuma said there was a need for clarity on the indigenisation law.
“Without clarity on how the indigenisation policy will work, we are going nowhere,” said Mr Tshuma.
