Zanu-PF chair derides idea of Bulawayo being granted special economic zone status

Zanu-PF Provincial Chairman for Bulawayo, Callistus Ndlovu, on Friday poured cold water on the idea of Bulawayo being declared a special economic zone (SEZ) saying the concept is suitable for coastal areas.

For the greater part of this year, businesspeople and organisations such as the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries have been lobbying for the country's second largest city to be declared a special economic zone to arrest de-industrialisation which has plagued the city.

SEZ  refers to a geographical region that has economic laws which are more liberal than a country's typical economic laws and this is meant to increase foreign direct investment.

Commenting on remarks made by a local policy analyst Butler Tambo during a meeting in Bulawayo on implementation of ZimAsset organised by the Public Policy Research Institute of Zimbabwe, Ndlovu warned against raising hopes that Bulawayo would benefit from being a SEZ.

"Let us be realistic, where special economic zones have been successfully implemented has been on coastal cities,"  said Ndlovu.

"If you look at China, those cities where the economic zones were established are  coastal cities.  We are a landlocked country."

While many countries that include Brazil and India have set up special economic zones, China has been the most successful in implementing them to attract foreign capital.

Earlier in his presentation, Tambo had said declaration of Bulawayo as a SEZ was the salvation to the crisis of de-industrialisation afflicting the city, once Zimbabwe's industrial hub.

"China adopted the concept of special economic zones in1978 and by 1981 four zones accounted for 59,4% of foreign direct investment in China," said Tambo.

He said with ZimStats putting Bulawayo's population at 650 000, it was possible to have "everyone in the city gainfully employed".

"Companies like the Cold Storage Commission which used to employ about 5 000 people could be revived," said Tambo.

However, he said Matabeleland has over the years lost its position of being the number one producer of beef in the country.

"Masvingo is now the number one producer followed by Mashonaland East, but Matabeleland still has the advantage that it still has the best beef in terms of quality," said Tambo.

Reacting to Ndlovu's remarks, Tambo said if economic zones were not feasible then the idea of an economic corridor such as the Trans-Limpopo Spatial Development Initiative could be revived.