Zimbabwe must embrace indigenization for Economic recovery

It seems the International community is unlikely to loosen the purse strings anytime soon .This presents an opportunity for some of the Government’s much vaunted programmes to be tested. One such area is the indigenization programme which should now be put to true test with the Government harnessing skill, expertise and resources of Zimbabweans across the world in its quest to revive Zimbabwe‘s economy. The indigenization agenda as of now appears to have taken the back seat when it should be part of the key drivers of the economic revival effort. This just serves to confirm that previous calls for indigenization were merely opportunistic and meant to re-enforce a patronage system.

Instead of the politicians globe trotting on their own seeking donations ,aid and other freebies it would be advisable to include local business leaders to lead some of those foreign trips seeking potential business partners as part of the general economic recovery vision. The on and off calling for indigenization ahead of elections is unwise as it damages what could other wise be a very effective way to mobilize foreign direct investments. As an example a local entrepreneur holding platinum mining rights has a higher chance of success in attracting additional Foreign direct investment than just sending a politician to try to convince other politicians to send their tax payers funds to revive Zimbabwe’s Economy.

The truth of the matter is Zimbabwe and her problems do not rank highly during this Global economic recession . As a direct result not much money should be expected from any source in form of donations , aid or other normal third world freebies. The only way to attract meaningful capital into Zimbabwe is making the country attractive as an investment destination. In the process indigenous business people must play a meaningful role in attracting this investment and attracting suitable investment partners. This means the Government must make deliberate effort to include local entrepreneurs from the initial stages rather than to appear to short change foreign investors when they are already in the country by changing rules of the game mid-way during the game.

The Indigenization and Economic Empowerment Act came into law in Zimbabwe in March 2008 under much fanfare and protest form other quarters. In essence The Act, seeks to create an enabling environment to improve the indigenous population’s participation in economic activities of the country and allow economic prosperity to be shared more equitably. The passage of the law is just but one step in a long process. There is need to educate the country’s citizenry about the benefits of such a process in manner that will generate credibility for the process. Previous efforts have been tainted and clouded by corruption and nepotism due to the lack of clear guidelines on who and how one qualifies to benefit from such a noble programme.

The often repeated allegation is that the same individuals seem to qualify and benefit in the indigenization or empowerment process. This has resulted in the process losing its appeal and being frowned upon. These issues could be addressed by the Government of National Unity if the process is opened to debate and clear guidelines and qualification parameters are set and clearly communicated As part of the national vision and Economic recovery effort the indigenization of the economy should be a central theme as it will in the long run make Zimbabwe a stable economy with internal capacity to resist externally induced shock.


The Ministry of Youth Development, Indigenization and Empowerment was created specifically as a government ministry, responsible for youth issues and economic empowerment in Zimbabwe. One of its key functions is supposed to be actively assisting young entrepreneurs to access resources necessary to enter and succeed in business. This ministry surprisingly has been rather missing in action in terms of playing a leading role in mobilizing resources for the Economic recovery process. The ministry could do more in terms of educating the nation and attracting experienced Zimbabweans abroad who could assist in developing effective resource mobilization programmes.


In both South Africa and Zimbabwe, the perceived need to anchor new policies in socially acceptable contexts has become a prominent feature of post-transition politics with Governments paying mostly lip service to the programme. ‘Third Chimurenga’ in Zimbabwe and Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) in the socio-cultural context of ubuntu in South Africa have resulted in over politicization of an economic programme that is critical yet explosive if not properly structured and branded . The process must be branded and packaged as an economic programme and not political sloganeering .

It has to be noted that coercive redistribution of wealth is not a solution for enriching historically disadvantaged indigenous people as it does not directly create new wealth. Entrepreneurship ability, traits and experience are critical in success of any venture discovering or re-allocating assets does not guarantee that the assets will be put to good use or that beneficiaries will improve their standards of living. What is required is a stable economic environment that allows those who are ready to work hard for their wealth not to ululate after being awarded grabbed enterprises or assets. This environment is created by laying out clear policies ,educating the people about them which will instill confidence in investors ( local and foreign).

As the GNU seeks to stabilize the economy there is need to embrace indigenization in a transparent and deliberate manner .This must be well communicated to ensure that investors know all the rules of engagement. Such an approach will ensure that opportunists can not hijack the noble process and use it as a self enrichment scheme which in the long run will damage the current efforts to re-brand the nation as a friendly investment and tourist destination .

Gilbert Muponda is an Entrepreneur based in Canada.

He is Founder of GMRI Capital He can be reached at;

Email: gilbert@gilbertmuponda.com Skype ID: gilbert.Muponda

Twitter ; http://twitter.com/gmricapital

Phone: 1-416-841-5542