The conference which was officially opened by the Minister of Finance and Economic Development Patrick Chinamasa, focused on quantifying the benefit of purchasing from local businesses focusing on mining sector procurement, manufacturing sector value chains and local private sector participation in public infrastructure development programs.
Some of the issues discussed include:
The need to enhance local procurement in the mining sector, which contributes most to export receipts. Evidence given by mining executives present indicated that local mining sector procurement has tremendously improved though there are still evident gaps in which local market players could be very active. Minister Chinamasa expressed the need to value add our raw materials instead of exporting them raw as he implored that fact that it’s high time we have a transparent, optimal and equitable exploitation of our mineral resources for sustainable growth. The current situation where minerals are exported raw only for us to import finished products from our own minerals is certainly not sustainable. Every time we import finished products we lose jobs and money.
Mining representatives provided some of the challenges constraining the mining sector as well as reasons why miners prefer to procure internationally. These ranged from quality issues, price and supply lead times. The Finance Minister also alluded to this and advised suppliers to have a moral business ethic were you make reasonable mark-ups and push volumes instead of demanding ridiculously high mark-ups and in the process pushing away buyers.
Government representatives present expressed their appreciation to the conference organisers and requested for more conferences of this sort where Government can engage with local market players such that they are able to formulate evidence-based policies. The Government is currently reforming public procurement that will decentralise procurement with the State Procurement Board becoming a regulatory authority.
The need to strategically promote industries with high economic and employment multiplier effects was emphasised. The hyperinflation era left industry in a dire state and to recover from this de-industrialisation, manufacturers need support and a market. It’s imperative to understand that producers only produce for a market and without a ready market; it’s not possible to industrialise. We should therefore lobby for policies targeted at certain industries with multiplier effects to take us out of this plunge.
Conclusively, we need to industrialise and this is the only way we can grow as a nation and get out of this poverty trap. To industrialise we need support from Government but most importantly all market players have a role to play. Policy makers can formulate policies to promote and support industry in the gestation period which is now, when companies try to recover. However, we cannot sit around and expect the Government to do it all for us. There are in-house issues we all need to take responsibilities for which are crippling our country. For example, corruption and smuggling at border posts. Though protection may be given, suppliers should not take advantage and produce low quality goods and put exorbitantly high mark-ups. Consumers should “Buy Zimbabwe” whenever possible bearing in mind that every dollar spent on imports is a dollar lost for the nation.
The day ended with a section on resolutions and these included:
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Creating structures to track Government projects preferably before tenders such that people position themselves.
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Building capacity of Buy Zimbabwe on research
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Thrive to balance local procurement without compromising quality and competitiveness
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Lobby Government to make information easily accessible to all local market players.
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Popularise the Buy Zimbabwe strategy
The Herald