The ManicaPost
Kudzanai Gerede Business Correspondent
Government will identify and finance struggling manufacturing firms with potential to produce various industrial equipment for the revival of key productive sectors of the economy starting with manufacturers of mining equipment earmarked for local small scale miners, Industry and Commerce minister, Dr Mike Bimha has said.This is expected to boost local procurement strides Government has been advocating for amid concerns of massive importation of industrial equipment.
The move comes at a time when Government is assisting small scale miners in mechanizing their operations and having local manufacturers of that equipment directly supply miners to stimulate economic synergies in the mining and manufacturing sectors.
The rationale behind the move is to curtail the country’s ever increasing import account while availing funds to capacitate the waning manufacturing base and promoting procurement of locally produced products.
The mining sector has been identified as a major importer of various mining equipment and the 2015 Mining Industry Survey Report highlighted that out of the US$ 1,8 billion in revenue generated, US$ 720 million was however being exported through procurement of equipment and mining supplies from outside the country.
As the country embarks on the industrialisation process, investing in local manufacturing of machinery needed for industrial rejuvenation has been largely viewed as a positive step that will also need stringent policies compelling local industries to procure locally.
The Ministries of Mines and Mineral Development and that of Industry and Commerce will launch a US$ 18 million facility to three Bulawayo manufacturing firms at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF) currently underway to produce a variety of mining equipment meant for small scale mining sector.
Speaking to journalists on Monday at his offices in Harare, Minister Bimha said Government has secured loans from various finance institutions both locally and externally in order give local industry a stronger footing while encouraging local miners to procure locally.
Complementary to the initiative, the ministry of Mines and Mineral Development will also engage small scale miners embarking on the mechanisation drive to procure equipment locally from manufacturers.
“About US$ 18 million that will be distributed to three selected companies in Bulawayo that has capacity to produce certain equipment meant for the mining industry particularly for small scale miners.
‘‘So rather than import this equipment, we capacitate local producers. The money is for them to retool and re-equip and be able to go into production.”
“It goes along with Government extension and objective of local procurement but at the same time facilitating our local producers to source funding to produce what we require locally, so I think it’s something that will be received positively by industries in Bulawayo and beyond Bulawayo,” he said, adding that the same will be extended to other sectors.
The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has been active in facilitating mechanisation of small scale and artisanal miners in order to prop gold deliveries.
Last year RBZ unveiled a US$ 20 million loan facility for disbursed to small scale and artisanal miners to be used to source machinery for gold production. However local industry has not been capacitated enough to meet the required production needed, prompting much of the equipment imported outside the country.
This has also been noted across other sector like agriculture where mechanisation equipment is procured outside the country when irrigation equipment, tractors and a variety of other agricultural equipment are being manufactured locally.
