“Zimbabwe’s industrial sector remains uncompetitive due to production costs and cheap imports flooding the market,” outgoing ZNCC President Obert Sibanda said.

“Production costs have also been very high due to exorbitant electricity and water bills. Power cuts have meant that production time has been lost and many companies have continued to operate below capacity. That means that many companies are not capitalizing on economies of scale. Business has therefore a long way to go to address these and other issues,” he said. “The business world is also suffering from the poor infrastructure in the country. Poor roads have meant that some areas are inaccessible for business, and lines of communication are very poor. The business world has not been spared of incessant power and water cuts, often meaning that workers had to be turned away but will still need to be paid at the end of the month.”

Sibanda said the majority of employees were earning low wages which translated to a depressed business environment.  Many people are earning below the poverty datum line. This means that many people have very little disposable income that is left. This has a negative impact on businesses because the demand for their products is low. The volume of transactions has been depressed as a direct consequence of poor liquidity levels. He urged the Government to revive links with the international community. The relationship between the country and the international community, especially the West, have been frosty over the past decade. There is a lot that therefore needs to be done to ensure that business starts to move from stability to economic growth.  One of the things that is critical is to re-engage the international community. The policy makers should remember that the world has become a global village and so there is a need to work with other international players. A good policy for formulation is integral as it will ensure that the much needed foreign currency and investor are brought back to the economy