Story by Stanley James, Business Editor
VICE President General (Retired) Dr Constantino Chiwenga says Zimbabwe is a safe and attractive investment destination driven by government policy of creating a business-friendly environment.
Sixteen investment promotion agencies in the SADC region met in Harare this Monday for the regional investment conference, on the sidelines of the 7th SADC Industrialisation Week.
In his key note address, Vice President General Retired Dr Constantino Chiwenga reiterated the Government of Zimbabwe’s commitment to creating a safe and viable business environment.
“The President Cde Dr Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa is committed to creating a business friendly environment and attracting global investments. The Zimbabwe Investment and Development Agency and One Stop Investment Services Centre streamline investment processes, reducing registration timelines, harmonising investment laws ,enhancing investment facilitation and prioritising commercially viable projects will catalyse investment and economic development in the whole region,” he said.
Investment is also being cited as crucial for economic growth and regional integration.
“As you deliberate during this conference, I urge you to come up with innovative ideas and suggestions on how each member state can improve investment and business environment. It is also imperative to implement investment cooperation activities between the private sector and member states to achieve SADC’s goals of regional integration, industrialisation and infrastructure development,” he added.
The SADC region is also being implored to take advantage of vast resources to attract investors, “The SADC region holds significant investment potential , According to SADC reports, its 16 member states contribute to 27,78 percent of Africa’s GDP and attracted 55,10 percent of total Foreign Direct Investment inflows to Africa in 2021 .The region boasts valuable minerals, offering investment opportunities in extraction , beneficiation, and value addition .Recent discoveries of lithium in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zimbabwe present opportunities for lithium beneficiation and on the long term the manufacturing of lithium batteries and be a key player in the manufacturing of electrical vehicles.”
A tour of exhibition stands by the SADC investment agencies during the regional investment conference further created an opportunity to assess project approvals, available opportunities, natural resources, capital flows and the state of the regional integration thrust.
