Story by Pavel Makona
ZIMBABWE’S investment in research and innovation is beginning to yield tangible results, with locally developed technologies and industrial solutions helping to strengthen domestic production, reduce reliance on imports and accelerate industrialisation.
It emerged at the 7th Annual General Meeting of the Scientific and Industrial Research and Development Centre (SIRDC) in Harare this Friday that adopting home-grown technologies has enabled companies to solve production challenges, improve product quality and develop locally manufactured alternatives to imported goods.
IP Information Services Associate at ARIPO, Mr Charles Satumba, said local innovation is enabling Zimbabwe to manufacture its own products, reducing the country’s reliance on imports and saving foreign currency.
“As local innovation continues to come to the fore, we can now produce and manufacture our own products. This saves the country a significant amount of foreign currency,” he said.
Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Engineering at ZNDU, Dr Peter Manyere, said local production is driving Zimbabwe’s industrialisation agenda, with industries expanding into rural and remote areas to support inclusive national development.
“This is going to drive the industrialisation agenda because we now have local production. We are also seeing the industry expanding into rural and remote areas, which will contribute to the development of the entire nation.”
This comes at a time when the government is committed to allocating one percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) towards research and development, a move aimed at strengthening innovation, commercialising research and enhancing industrial competitiveness.
SIRDC Board Chairperson, Mr Misheck Kachere, said the institution’s innovations in agriculture and mining are driving industrialisation, adding that increased funding for research and development would accelerate Zimbabwe’s economic transformation.
“We have seed companies producing a maize variety that is highly drought-resistant and well-suited to Zimbabwean conditions. We developed and commercialised it, and it is now the preferred seed under the Presidential Maize Input Scheme. That is one practical innovation we have achieved. In the mining sector, we have also developed technology to beneficiate and analyse minerals. Many of the ores we export contain valuable minerals that were previously overlooked. We have identified these minerals and are now developing technologies to extract and utilise them.
“The funding we have received will enable us to continue this work. However, if the policy of allocating one percent of GDP to research and development is implemented, it would be transformative. Within the next five years, we will be able to revolutionise the sector,” he said.
The move to allocate resources towards research and development is meant to drive innovation, enhance industrial competitiveness and support the country’s industrialisation drive.
