President Robert Mugabe says Zimbabwe stands ready to work with South Africa in rebuilding its economy.
Speaking to journalists soon after meeting a visiting South African business delegation at Zimbabwe House in Harare, President Mugabe said South Africa was indeed a true friend of Zimbabwe and it was not surprising to see its business community offering a helping hand to the new government to address its challenges.
“We are very pleased with the visit,” Mugabe said. “It’s very enchanting, it boosts us up and shows the confidence that South Africa has in us.”
The leader of the delegation from Business Unity South Africa (BUSA), Patrice Motsepe, said Zimbabwe was a safe place for foreign investment and the country was likely to receive numerous investments in the next two years.
“I have confidence that anyone who commits resources to Zimbabwe will see that the country is a good place to do business in,” said Motsepe, one of South Africa’s richest persons and owner of the South African Premier League soccer club Mamelodi Sundowns.
Motsepe said the South African business community was willing to come and invest in Zimbabwe, adding that doing so was part of paying back to Zimbabwe for its contribution to South Africa’s economy.
He expressed satisfaction at the progress being made by the new government in attracting investors as well as creating a conducive environment for business.
The high-powered delegation arrived in the country on Monday morning and held meetings with Finance Minister Tendai Biti and the local business community.
Zimbabwean Ambassador to South Africa Simon Khaya-Moyo accompanied the 22-member delegation, which included Rev. Frank Chikane, a senior official in the Office of the President of South Africa.
Other members were drawn from SA’s various economic sectors such as mining, agriculture and construction. BUSA is South Africa’s biggest business group that incorporates the Black Business Council and Business SA.
ZANIS/NNN-NEW ZIANA/ENDS/MM
Can someone please also work with Zambia to restore the economy.
Given them 2 years and you will be talking about something positive while we keep on whining !
they chased white farmers, that’s why kuli insala nomba. i hope they have leant now
Soon, Zambians will be going to Zimbabwe in search of food and other mechanize
WOW, those are some big names and some of the most powerful businessmen in South Africa.
Anyway the rebirth of Zimbabwe’s economy will result in advantages for Zambia’s manufacturing sector as it will provide an emergent market. We just recently had a new cellphone manufacturing plant coming up and we have MFEZ which is supposed to bring up Zambia’s manufacturing potential.
With this new market just South of the boarder, we will increase our export capacity. Plus Zimbabwe has already taken a huge hit in terms of tourism so I do not think tourism traffic to Zambia will go down due to Zimbabwe’s emergence.
The improved Zim economy will be of benefit to both Zambia and South Africa as it will also mean less illegal immigration.
All the best Zimbabwe and good luck.
I have a feeling our neighbors are quick in getting organized than we are. Maybe I may be wrong but I have no proof of the opposite.
………and while Zambia (the land of talk, talk, talk with no action) lags shamelessly behind
If Zimbabwe comes back and passes Zambia then i will forever give up on this Zombie Zambia
#8 you have a point but the realty is that Zim will definetely by pass zed as the ama gole gole are highly determined people who are so proud of themselves and would do anything to make their lives better, just look at how industrious their wives are, selling all sorts of things yet the zedians are full of arm chair critics and self praise that is past
it no longer pays to be zambian as we can clearly see that some indians are more zambian when it comes to getting favors while our own leaders are busy cutting each others throats. a long time ago, peace was a measure to be zambian but we have had peace in malawi, botswana and namibia, so there is nothing perculiar about being zambian and infact being zambian nowdays is just paper work. the world is out there and real life which is more sensible than the folly currently going on in our country at political level
kADOYO, like it or not..Zimbambwe will be far much better than Zambia very soon! just give them 2 or more years…
Takula navo vosalila all the time mu zambia.
Thats true ZAmbian just like talking too much and by so doing no progress in made things keep on moving in circles they by no development. No one seems to have the drive to change Zambia. That is why i want to change is myself i have found the solution. you will soon see it so you guys in diaspora i will have to call you back we work together.Of course especially after you have seen my good works i belive you would support me.
Otherwise if i wont be the one to go there to change it will continue for currency to depreciate and no proper standard of infrastructure. Atleast LPM had tried. Now we need someboday and am that person.lets work together.
Zambians should also learn to co-operate thats a good move
we zambians r quite funny just blogging here and criticising as if the economy will suddenly grow legs and sprint towards developed. how much brain drain do we have in zed compared to zim? they have the manpower while most of the zambian manpower is at a desk somewhere in the diaspora thinking how useless it is to be zambian!heheheh tooo funny
the problem is that we zambians we never learn,am pretty sure zim has learnt its lesson.all the best zim!!
zed is so hopeless
Zimbabwe will not surpass Zambia this time around.Zambia has more natural resources to fall back on than Zim.Those farmers aren’t stupid enough to go back even if Mugabe died today.They have lost so much and who can blame them?It will not take 2 years as some are conteplating but maybe 10 years or so.It has taken Uganda 20 years to bounce back so realistically Zim might take not less than 10 years.They have killed their agricultural and tourism industries which was their pride.That black empowerment delegation mentioned about bis only a fraction of the biggest names in SA business.Firstly, investors will be of an opportunistic nature followed by real investments once trust is established.But as of now the white farmers don’t trust Zims.
#15 you are highly mistaken!Here in the UK the biggest number of immigrants is firstly from Nigeria(not surprised) followed by Zimbabweans.Most of them are highly qualified professionals from their respective countries doing manual jobs.
And all of you bloggers scared to death that Zim might surpass Zambia well,maybe if by a miracle.That economy has been crippled and just like others in history will take some time to recover.It took a while for the German economy after Hitler;took about 20 years for the Ugandans after Idi Amin and so on.
Any investor will have to think twice before making a deal with Bob whether black or white.How many Zambians would go and settle in Zimbabwe and set up businesses there? If you could not even buy that stinking margarine without being harrassed by the so called fellow Africans…It will be good for the region for Zim to recover anyway so as to reduce on illigal immigration and crime.
Zimbos never learn. We kicked out Ian Douglas Smith for them and did they show gratitude!? No! They called us names and all sorts of stuff. Did you know that in Zim, the word for worthless currency is “Kwacha”?! I don’t give a s&%*t whether these guys swim or drown. SADC doesn’t owe them anything.
Why all the handwringing and self-criticism people? It is definitely not doing you image any good. As a south african I always took Zambians to be hard-working and huble people. This is not the time for self-criticism, it is the time yo attract investment into our countries. Zambia will NEVER prosper out of its copper resources because in the long run copper will get cheaper, what it needs to do is to invest in the skills and industrial infrastructure so that it becomes the world’s iggest producer of a copper relate industrial product. Knowledge NOT Resources is the key to Wealth!!