Zimbabwe continues to use opportunities of the annual gathering of business, political, academic and other leaders in the World Economic Forum at Davos in Switzerland to sell the country as an investment destination and to press the policy that \u201cZimbabwe is Open for Business\u201d.<\/p>\n
Finance and Economic Development Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube represented Zimbabwe at the 50th World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos this year from January 21 to 24 and went further by hosting a practical investment seminar in Zurich.<\/p>\n
In an interview yesterday, Prof Ncube said WEF was an important platform for international re-engagement, and for driving the \u201cZimbabwe is Open for Business\u201d policy .<\/p>\n
He said Zimbabwe took advantage of this year\u2019s WEF edition to sell the numerous investment opportunities that exist, and explained the specific incentives that investors can get.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom a Zimbabwe perspective, the takeaways from Davos are: \u2018Zimbabwe is Open for Business\u2019, this mantra was well captured by the event we hosted in Zurich focusing on investing in Zimbabwe and the opportunities that are available,\u201d said Prof Ncube.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe discussed the various incentives available to investors and the security of their investments. Target sectors of interest from investors are mining, tourism, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, and services. Zimbabwe will work specific incentives for Swiss investors in these sectors.\u201d<\/p>\n
If new Swiss investors come, they will join other companies from the European country, principally Nestle, which already operates in Zimbabwe.<\/p>\n
Nestl\u00e9 SA is a Swiss multinational food and drink processing conglomerate headquartered in Vevey, Vaud, Switzerland.<\/p>\n
It is the largest food company in the world, measured by revenues and other metrics, since 2014.<\/p>\n
The interest from Swiss investors comes on the back of various commitments by a number of investors such as Karo Resources and the Russians, who have partnered Government in platinum mining in Darwendale.<\/p>\n
Great Dyke Investments, a joint venture between Russia\u2019s Vi Holdings and Zimbabwe\u2019s Landela Mining Venture (Pvt) Ltd, last week started operations on its Darwendale concessions after years of preparation, with the first box cut being made.<\/p>\n
A box cut is a single rectangular hole made on the surface of the earth, which serves as the opening of many new mines.<\/p>\n
The platinum deal is worth US$2 billion, and President Mnangagwa\u2019s visit to Moscow last year saw the release of US$300 million, part of which has helped to start the implementation of the project.<\/p>\n
Many other investors have taken up opportunities in Zimbabwe since 2017, after the Government re-opened the country to investment by addressing obstacles that made Harare seem an unsafe destination.<\/p>\n
Prof Ncube said Zimbabwe\u2019s participation in this year\u2019s WEF allowed it to engage the world with regards the food shortages caused by erratic rains.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe global community is committed to support Zimbabwe in the sourcing of grain and other foods to deal with the effects of drought,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis was expressed by the WFP executive director (Mr David Beasley), and UN under-secretary on humanitarian assistance (Mr Mark Lowcock).\u201d<\/p>\n
In December last year, the United Nations said it would provide food assistance for 4,1 million Zimbabweans.<\/p>\n
Just over seven million people require food assistance after a bad harvest last year, and with another poor yield looming due to erratic rains because of climate change, more people in rural and urban areas might need food going forward.<\/p>\n
The pledge by the global community to provide more food, combined with the efforts of Government, brings relief to citizens who are battling to feed families.<\/p>\n
President Mnangagwa has reiterated that no one will starve in Zimbabwe as adequate measures had been put in place to feed all food insecure households.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Zimbabwe continues to use opportunities of the annual gathering of business, political, academic and other leaders in the World Economic Forum at Davos in Switzerland to sell the country as an investment destination and to press the policy that \u201cZimbabwe is Open for Business\u201d. Finance and Economic Development Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube represented Zimbabwe at […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":18986,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,12],"tags":[424,31],"class_list":{"0":"post-18984","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-all-news","8":"category-policy","9":"tag-investment","10":"tag-mnangagwa"},"yoast_head":"\n