Zimbabwe ministries clash over 11% cattle tax

The 11 percent cattle tax, which levied on villagers by rural districts when they sell their livestock, is at the centre of a dispute between two government ministries.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development has questioned the administration of cattle tax collections by rural district councils.

The ministry accused local authorities which fall under the Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing of not contributing to the development of the livestock industry.  

According to the Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development, Paddy Zhanda, there is no justification for the rural district to continue administering the funds as there are no direct benefits towards the growth of the livestock industry.

"We are concerned about the obtaining the cattle tax being levied on farmers when they sale their beasts. We feel the money is not being used to improve the livestock industry," he said.  

The Secretary General of the Association of Rural District Councils of Zimbabwe, Mr Rodgers Mozhenty insisted that the accusations against the RDCs are baseless and are meant to leave the local authorities with no source of income to embark on developmental projects.

"We feel the whole noise is meant to ensure that the local authorities are left without income streams for developmental projects," Mr Mozhenty said.

While the two ministries engage in the blame game, the realities on the ground are that the national cattle herd remains below the 1996 level of 5,9 million.

The obtaining infrastructure is also in poor state with individuals contributing towards the buying of dipping chemicals.