IDC to be modeled along lines of IDC of South Africa

Published: 02 July 2014

The Industrial Development Corporation is set to relinquish its holding of several companies following its complete overhaul.

Minister of Industry and Commerce Mike Bimha told the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry that the "complete re-organisation" of the IDC, which began under the chairmanship of now Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor Dr John Mangudya, had moved a gear up.

"As envisaged in ZimAsset for the need of a financial institution specifically for industry, we want the IDC to be along the same lines as the IDC of South Africa where they are not like what they are doing of holding companies and running companies.

"We want the new IDC to manage the funding of industry so that all these facilities like the Distresses Industries and Marginalised Areas Fund (DIMAF), Zimbabwe Economic and Trade Revival Facility (Zetref) and any other facilities that come on board will come under one institution whose primary role is to ensure the development of industry," said Minister Bimha.

Although Minister Bimha described the restructuring of the IDC as a "complete re-organisation", both the IDC and the IDC of South Africa Ltd are officially described as 'self-financing, national development finance institutions'. The IDC has of late been disposing a number of its subsidiaries in line with its envisaged "new" structure.

The firms, which have been lined up for disposal include Zimbabwe Grain Bag, Almin Metal industries, Surface Investments, Sunway City, Stone Holdings, Modzone Enterprises, Zimbabwe Copper Industries, Zimglass, Allied Insurance and automotive companies Deven Engineering and Amtec.
- BH24

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