Let Bulawayo Survive

Cabinet has set up a seven-member ministerial team to look at possibilities of reviving Bulawayo's industrial sector that has virtually collapsed.   

Youth Development, Indigenisation and Empowerment minister Saviour Kasukuwere Wednesday said the decision was reached on Tuesday when cabinet was discussing the "Let Bulawayo Survive" policy document.

Scores of firms have closed shop in Bulawayo which was once the country's industrial hub with around 75% of manufacturing activity centred in the city, citing lack of access to capital and perennial water shortages.

Kasukuwere admitted that Bulawayo has for long been sidelined in the mainstream economy of the country and has therefore lagged behind in development.

He said revenue raised in Bulawayo, through the centralised nature of government operations has over the years been used to develop other regions.

Speaking at the same meeting, Bulawayo Metropolitan governor Cain Mathena said the State should be involved when companies decide to close and relocate to other regions.

Mathema said there should be a paradigm shift from holding countless business conferences, which yield nothing, to focusing on scouting for funds.

He challenged absentee business owners in Bulawayo and surrounding areas to return to the region than leave their enterprises to be managed by workers.