Govt pledges to support informal sector
GOVERNMENT has pledged to support the informal sector so that it curbs the high poverty levels in the country.
About 67% of Zimbabwe’s working population is reportedly in the informal sector, which is also a major contributor to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).
Addressing delegates at a consultative strategy meeting on formalisation of the informal sector, Harare Metropolitan Affairs minister Oliver Chidawu in a speech read on his behalf said employment creation was part of government’s central agenda.
“Government’s commitment to the employment promotion agenda is clearly manifested by the fact that it has prioritised sustainable development goal (SDG) number 8 on decent work and economic growth in its implementation strategy for the SDGs,” Chidawu said.
“As you may know, within the economic blueprint National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1), employment promotion has been identified as a cross-cutting issue to be mainstreamed in all the initiatives under NDS1.”
He said NDS1 outlined areas which are meant to facilitate the transition from informal to formal economy.
“This underscores the importance of prioritising the informal economy, identifying interventions to support informal workers, and working towards increasing both incomes and productivity of the informal sector,” Chidawu said.
“Government’s efforts towards the formalisation strategy are being supported by the international Labour Organisation and United Nations Development Programme as well as social partners coming up with this strategy.”
“Programmes ought to be developed through government leadership, with the involvement of all key stakeholders. In addition, harmonisation and alignment of interventions among the divergent actors create greater cohesion and increase the chances of success, especially as stakeholders are mutually accountable to each other and in particular manage for results.”
He said such policies should be developed in consultation with the intended beneficiaries to ensure buy-in.