Business hail govt strategy

TENDAI BHEBE IN BULAWAYO

 

Zimbabwe’s private sector this week hailed measures contained in the government’s pharmaceutical manufacturing strategy saying it would help in bringing more investment opportunities.

Tinashe Manzungu

Industry players, who spoke at the virtual pharmaceutical manufacturing strategy for Zimbabwe (2021-2025) held this week, said the strategy speaks to the needs of the industry.

“A strategy like this, for us people in business, we see saving lives, we see profits, we see business and what it means is everyone who wants to do business in Zimbabwe or outside Zimbabwe  would make good money,” the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce president, Tinashe Manzungu said.

He said the strategy comes at a time the economy is targeting productivity and a call for beneficiation and value addition.

“We welcome the idea and we are ready to move with the strategy. We are ready to move with the government. We are ready to move with all stakeholders in this regard because we are going to see people coming to invest in the country and also all those who are already in the country getting to look into this sector, specifically the noble sector to invest in,” Manzungu said.

He said the Covid-19 pandemic forced borders to close and had a negative impact on the country’s economy. Manzungu said the closure of borders has seen an increase in local content and products on shelves which “means to say we have got a lesson from the closure of borders that has been caused by the pandemic”.

“So what it means is when you come to the pharmaceutical manufacturing strategy we are saying we need also to up our game to make sure that we move from 12% supply to a better number. So this is a brilliant opportunity that we are seeing as people in business. Then also when we are talking about the 88% of the demand that we are looking to meet as it is imported from other countries,” he said.

The Ministry of Health and Child Care deputy director for pharmacy services Newman Madzikwa said they partnered with the Ministry of Industry and the pharmaceutical sector for the development of the local industry.

“So we are together with the Ministry of Industry in promoting this strategy and we will do the best we can to facilitate that,” he said.

Madzikwa said they are  balancing the availability of medicine and the capacity of local industries to meet the needs progressively.

He said government supports local industry as seen by the National Pharmaceutical Company of Zimbabwe  regularly running tenders that are specifically targeting local manufacturers.

“We are balancing the availability of medicine and the capacity of local industries to meet the needs progressively. We believe that we will be able to meet the targets that are set in the strategy of reaching 60% for essential medicines being locally manufactured by the local industry,” Madzikwa said.

“So what we are trying to do is to match the absorption of these commodities that the local manufacturers are producing in respect to building their capacity. So we believe that we are on course and able to meet the set targets by the strategy in line with the government policy.”

Industry and Commerce minister Sekai Nzenza said the government was not the sole funder of these initiatives and there was need for more joint ventures.

She said the Industrial Development Corporation has been allocated ZWL$1.9bn with the concessional funding designed to support the development of value chains.

“The pharmaceutical value is one of the 10 value chains that have been prioritised under the president’s national development strategy 1,” Nzenza said.

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