ED speaks on Gvt, business dialogue

THE thrust of the new Government is to create an environment where business and Government mutually engage and dialogue to ensure that economic enablers contribute meaningfully to the country’s development.

This was said by President Mnangagwa yesterday while addressing a huge crowd at an election campaign rally outside Rudhaka Stadium in Marondera.

The President also said the new political administration is championing vari- ous economic projects that will materially change the lives of the people.

“As the new dispensation, we have realised that there are various important stakeholders.

“We saw that we want our lives to improve and there are those that deal in the economy, these are captains of industry and business,” said President Mnangagwa.

“We gathered them to say, we now have a new Government and we don’t want the tendency to say we are in the private sector and they are in Government.

“Private sector and Government, we must always talk, must always dialogue.

“They should tell us what is needed by the private sector for business to grow, what laws they need for improved operations and as Government, we create an environment conducive for businesses to prosper,” he said. The new Government, he said, has managed to significantly grow the economy within the shortest possible time.

“We are focused on economic growth and we are asking what must we do about tourism? What must we do about agriculture? What must we do about our industry, infrastructure development, the construction of roads?

“Each sub-sector, we have a programme that you will see unfold.”

He said major infrastructure projects such as the Kariba South expansion, the expansion of Hwange Unit 7 and 8, including the major platinum project by Karo Resources that is set to be commissioned in Mashonaland West on Tuesday, are all happening under the new political administration.

President Mnangagwa said two banks — the Zimbabwe Women Micro-finance Bank (ZWMB) and the Youth Empowerment — that seek to extend at concessionary rates, have also been launched by Government.

Efforts to re-engage countries that had been hostile to Zimbabwe, he added, are beginning to pay dividends.

“We have a lot of resources but we don’t have the capital to tap into them. That is why we are seeking foreign direct investment,” he said.

“We want to attract global capital into the country and as we do that, we will also be promoting domestic capital.

“In the past two decades, we had remained behind.

“We want to say economics, business, economics, business, creation of wealth, the building of wealth and the setting of our heritage.

“We want the lives of our people to be uplifted. We must be a hard working population, hard working nation.

“We must create, as a Government, a platform where those that are able to prosper are given the opportunity and those that have challenges are assisted to prosper — that is the new dispensation.”

President Mnangagwa said efforts are underway to resuscitate the Cold Storage Company after Government signed a $100 million deal with a foreign investor.

“Here in Mashonaland East, you have minerals such as gold, lithium and granite — all those minerals are here,” said the President.

“But what is needed is capital, you need skills, you need machinery, you need technology for us to tap into these resources, this is why we have opened our economic front to say foreign investment must come.”

The rally was also attended by Vice President Dr Constantino Chiwenga and members from various Zanu-PF organs.