TENDAI BHEBE IN BULAWAYO
Government is reviewing the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Policy to ride on the constituency’s significant contribution to the economy.
A 2022 Finscope Survey showed that MSMEs contributed US$8.6bn to Zimbabwe’s GDP.
Speaking to journalists in Bulawayo on Friday last week, Dumisani Ncube the Advisory Council member for Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South and Bulawayo provinces confirmed the development saying there was need to invest in the MSMEs.
“One of the issues is workspace and policies which we are currently working on so that we provide a decent working environment for the MSMEs.
“We are saying we need to fight for the policies that will make these people feel recognised by the authorities,” Ncube said.
He said people were looking down upon the informal sector.
“… we are saying we are going back to the drawing board for certain adjustments as they are the ones that employ the bulk of people after the government,” Ncube said.
Bulawayo Vendors Trust Association executive director Mike Ndiweni said the informal sector was engaging the government to formalise the sector.
“It is important that small producers get linked to the market because it is their way of survival. These people also dream big. Some were saying we are producing from the backyards.
“We have been pushing for the transition from being formal to formal. We have been working with the government to come up with a strategy to come up with ways to formalise these businesses,” he said.
MSMEs have become a major pillar of the economy.
