Nyanga South MP warns of foreign currency externalisation via casinos and mining sector
CHENGETAI MURIMWA
Nyanga South legislator, Supa Mandiwanzira, has raised alarm over what he described as widening loopholes being exploited by foreign nationals to externalise foreign currency from Zimbabwe through casinos and the mining sector, calling for urgent legislative reforms to safeguard the economy.
Speaking during debate in Parliament, Mandiwanzira said casinos were increasingly being used as conduits for illicit financial flows, enabling foreign nationals to move large sums of money out of the country under the guise of gaming activities.
“We are seeing foreigners using casinos as a mechanism to externalise foreign currency, and this is happening in plain sight. These are loopholes that must be addressed if we are serious about safeguarding our economy,” he said.
The legislator warned that similar patterns of capital flight were evident in the mining sector, where foreign investors were benefiting from weak regulatory frameworks at the expense of local participation and national revenue.
Mandiwanzira criticised the structure of Zimbabwe’s mining value chain, arguing that it largely excludes locals while allowing foreign operators to dominate every stage of mineral extraction and export.
“Foreigners come into this country, pay very little money to acquire mining claims, bring their own machinery, labour, food and logistics, and buy nothing locally. They even arrange their own transport to ship minerals out of the country,” he said.
He said the situation had effectively sidelined Zimbabweans from benefiting meaningfully from their own natural resources.
“What remains for locals is almost nothing. The entire value chain is controlled externally, and that is a serious policy failure,” Mandiwanzira added.
The Nyanga South legislator commended Government for an earlier Cabinet decision to reserve mineral transportation for locals, but expressed concern that the provision had not been incorporated into the current mining legislation under consideration.
“Transport is a critical link in the value chain, and Cabinet had shown wisdom by reserving it for locals. Unfortunately, that position is not captured in the Bill, and I propose that it be reinstated,” he said.
Mandiwanzira also questioned the ease with which mining claims—particularly by foreign nationals—are being allocated, noting that mining rights confer superior land-use authority.
“Once a mining claim is pegged, it overrides all other land rights. A foreigner can come in and, for as little as US$590 or US$1,100, secure control of up to 150 hectares of land,” he said.
He proposed stricter revenue and investment guarantee measures for foreign applicants, including requiring them to deposit a significant sum with the central bank before being permitted to peg mining claims.
“That deposit would act as a guarantee of investment and allow money to circulate within our economy, instead of us giving away vast tracts of land for next to nothing,” Mandiwanzira said.
