Lack of funding impedes ZimAsset

Published: 30 November 2017

THE Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC) says lack of a resource mobilisation strategy has been the major impediment to the success of the government's economic blueprint, the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation (ZimAsset).

ZimAsset, which has failed to yield desired results, requires about $27 billion to retool industries and repair the country's infrastructure.

But, no big funders have so far been found to bankroll the economic blueprint rolled out in 2013 and expected to run up to the end of next year.

This week, Edward Samuriwo, a director in the OPC responsible for policy formulation, analysis and coordination, said the required amount was also not realistic.

He disclosed that the OPC will come up with a strategy to mobilise funding for ZimAsset part two, which is expected to kick off in 2019.

"ZimAsset one, which is coming to an end next year, requires about $27 billion. But that is not realistic because that document did not pin-point exactly where that kind of money would come from. There were no strategies and funding modalities. There were very limited consultations done before it was rolled out in 2013. What we have done now as OPC is that for ZimAsset part two, we are coming up with another cluster, which is resource mobilisation.

"The other problem was that the blue print was prioritising too many issues and having too many targets. There was also isolation from the rest of the world. We are not happy as OPC," said Samuriwo, who spoke at the Ministry of Macro-Economic Planning and Investment Promotion stakeholder consultation workshop on ZimAsset two and national investment policy on Monday this week.

The meeting kicked off on Monday and is running until next week on Wednesday in the capital.

At the 2013 elections, the ruling Zanu-PF party impressed voters with its election manifesto, which was then twisted by government officials into the country the ZimAsset economic plan.

The blue print did the trick for Zanu-PF in that poll, but it has now turned out to be a major headache for the party since very little has been achieved.

Even the private sector, which is supposed to be the driver behind the plan, has been so unlucky in the capital markets.

The local financial services sector is bleeding at the moment, and has been unable to attract reasonably priced lines of credit facilities because of the high country risk profile

Even deep-pocketed investors have been avoiding Zimbabwe due to the harsh empowerment laws that stipulate that indigenous blacks should have majority control in any local business.

Government's revenue base has also seriously shrunk resulting in the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority having severe headaches in trying to fund government operations.
- fingaz

Tags: ZimAsset,