News / National
Zimbabwe Banks empowerment fight will overshadow the land reform programme
25 Aug 2011 at 05:03hrs | Views
ZIMBABWE is considering not forcing foreign banks to sell majority stakes to locals as it is requiring mining companies to do under indigenisation legislation, the finance minister said Tuesday.
"Banks are different from mines, mines sit on capital, banks are conveyors of capital ... Naturally a different approach needs to be recognised..." Tendai Biti told journalists.
Under the country's empowerment laws, black Zimbabweans should acquire 51 percent of foreign businesses.
Biti also dismissed statement made by empowerment minister, Saviour Kasukuwere, who said this week that the war over indigenisation with foreign firms was going to be more intense than the bloody and chaotic land reform.
The vocal Kasukuwere said there was no going back on empowerment and that there was going to be war with foreign firms over their reluctance to comply with the country's laws. "The fight will overshadow the land reform programme as this one is much more sophisticated and is about serious wealth."
"What we have done is that we have made submissions to the ministry of indigenisation on agreement of a threshold, we have not agreed on a threshold," said Biti.
A state daily reported last week that Indigenisation Minister Saviour Kasukuwere had given 13 foreign companies including mining firms and banks two weeks to submit plans to sell their majority shares to locals or risk nationalisation.
The new indigenisation law is strongly supported by veteran President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has given his backing.
Biti, the secretary general of Tsvangirai's MDC-T party, said the government asked foreign banks to outline how they want to include locals in their share structure adding that a new position will be based on the current negotiations.
The minister said he met on Monday with representatives of Standard Bank, Barclays Bank and Stanbic Bank.
Central bank chief Gideon Gono has also warned against the taking over of foreign banks.
The indigenisation ministry has also put pressure on foreign banks to step up their investment in the country.
Kasukuwere has written to Stanbic, a Zimbabwean subsidiary of Standard Bank, telling it to invest up to US$1 billion (700 million euros) in the Zimbabwean economy, Business Day newspaper reported.
"Banks are different from mines, mines sit on capital, banks are conveyors of capital ... Naturally a different approach needs to be recognised..." Tendai Biti told journalists.
Under the country's empowerment laws, black Zimbabweans should acquire 51 percent of foreign businesses.
Biti also dismissed statement made by empowerment minister, Saviour Kasukuwere, who said this week that the war over indigenisation with foreign firms was going to be more intense than the bloody and chaotic land reform.
The vocal Kasukuwere said there was no going back on empowerment and that there was going to be war with foreign firms over their reluctance to comply with the country's laws. "The fight will overshadow the land reform programme as this one is much more sophisticated and is about serious wealth."
"What we have done is that we have made submissions to the ministry of indigenisation on agreement of a threshold, we have not agreed on a threshold," said Biti.
A state daily reported last week that Indigenisation Minister Saviour Kasukuwere had given 13 foreign companies including mining firms and banks two weeks to submit plans to sell their majority shares to locals or risk nationalisation.
The new indigenisation law is strongly supported by veteran President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has given his backing.
Biti, the secretary general of Tsvangirai's MDC-T party, said the government asked foreign banks to outline how they want to include locals in their share structure adding that a new position will be based on the current negotiations.
The minister said he met on Monday with representatives of Standard Bank, Barclays Bank and Stanbic Bank.
Central bank chief Gideon Gono has also warned against the taking over of foreign banks.
The indigenisation ministry has also put pressure on foreign banks to step up their investment in the country.
Kasukuwere has written to Stanbic, a Zimbabwean subsidiary of Standard Bank, telling it to invest up to US$1 billion (700 million euros) in the Zimbabwean economy, Business Day newspaper reported.
Source - AFP
