Business Guide
Business Guide
ZIMBABWE
Table of Contents
Foreword ...................................................................................................................................... 22
1. Outline of Zimbabwe ................................................................................................................ 33
2. India Zimbabwe Trade and Economic Relations............................................................. 77
3. Update on the Indigenisation Program ............................................................................ 10
10
4. Zimbabwean Economic Review........................................................................................... 13
13
5. Investing in Zimbabwe – an outline .................................................................................. 18
18
6. Role of the Zimbabwe Investment Authority .................................................................. 23
23
7. Opening a Representative Office ........................................................................................ 25
25
8. Investment Opportunities .................................................................................................... 27
27
8.1. Investment Opportunities for Indian Investors ......................................................... 27
27
8.2. Investment Opportunities for Zimbabwean Investors ............................................. 30
30
9. Indian Investors in Zimbabwe......................................................................................... 37
36
10. Zimbabwe-India Trade Data ............................................................................................ 40
39
10.1. Table 10.1 Zimbabwe`s trade with India (2012-2014) ........................................ 40
39
10.2. Table 10.2 Zimbabwe`s exports to India (2012-2014) ........................................ 40
39
10.3. Table 10.3 Zimbabwe`s top 20 imports from India (2012-2014) ..................... 40
39
10.4. Table 10.4 Zimbabwe`s top 50 imports sources from world (2012-2014) .... 41
40
10.5. Table 10.5 Zimbabwe`s top 50 export destinations (2012-2014) .................... 43
42
10.6. Table 10.6 Zimbabwe`s exports to world (2012-2014)........................................ 44
43
10.7. Table 10.7 Zimbabwe`s top 100 imports to world (2012-2014) ....................... 46
45
11. Useful Zimbabwean Contacts ......................................................................................... 50
49
12. Useful Contacts of Organisations in India .................................................................. 53
52
ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016 1
1. Outline of Zimbabwe
Land
Its total area is 3, 90,757 Square Kms and its time zone is GMT + 2hrs or it
is - 3 ½ hrs. IST. Almost the whole country lies more than 300m above sea
level. Nature has given Zimbabwe one of the finest climates in the world;
warm without being oppressive and with a daily average of bright sunshine
ranging from four to ten hours all the year round. The altitude of the
country moderates the tropical temperatures while its inland position keeps
the humidity comfortably low. Generally speaking, the days are bright and
sunny, the nights clear and cool. June and July are fairly cold months with
temperature variation between 7˚ C in the night to 21˚ C in the daytime. In
summer months, the temperature rarely exceeds 35˚ C. The rainy season is
from October to March with an annual rainfall of about 75 to 80 cms.
Lightning strikes often, resulting in as many as 200 deaths each year.
Weather in Harare
Historical Background
Southern Rhodesia came into being in 1890 with the arrival of European
settlers from South Africa led by the famous personality of Southern Africa -
Cecil John Rhodes. In 1923, Britain made Southern Rhodesia a self-
ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016 3
governing colony. In 1953, Central African Federation was created by
amalgamating Northern Rhodesia (present day Zambia), Southern Rhodesia
(presently Zimbabwe) and Nyasaland (presently Malawi). Following the
independence of Malawi in 1963, and Zambia in 1964, the white settler
minority in Rhodesia tried to perpetuate its privileges in Zimbabwe (then
southern Rhodesia) through a Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI)
from Britain. The African majority population responded with a bitter and
long drawn-out freedom struggle under the leadership of the Zimbabwe
African National Union (ZANU) led by Herbert Chitepo, Josiah Tongogara
and Robert G. Mugabe and the Zimbabwe African People‘s Union (ZAPU) led
by Dr. Joshua Nkomo and Josiah Chinamano. In 1979, after unsuccessful
attempts at negotiations, a conference was convened in London to work out
a settlement. This conference led to the Lancaster House Constitution,
which provided for the Independence of the country.
Map of Zimbabwe
Population
13.06 Million (Census 2012); Male 6.28 million, Female 6.78 million. Sex
ratio: 930 males per 1000 females. Population Growth rate: 1.1 %( 2002 -
2012), Total fertility rate: 3.8, Infant Mortality rate: 64 deaths per 1000
births (for 2012), Average size of Household: 4.2, Population density: 33 per
sq. km. Literacy: 96%
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Ethnic groups: African 98% (Shona 82%, Ndebele 14%, other 2%), mixed
and Asian 1%, white less than 1%. Religions: syncretism (part Christian,
part indigenous beliefs) 50%, Christian 25%, indigenous beliefs 24%,
Muslim and other 1%.
The World Population Rank is 72, while the population growth rate is 4%,
which is sustainable given the size of the economy. Within the African
context, the rank of population growth is 23. Zimbabwe also has a
significantly young population and this reflects an opportunity for
introducing products and services targeting this tech-savvy generation of
young urbanites.
Electrical system
Indian Community
Natural Resources
ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016 5
Russia (Platinum ore mining) and China (Power-related) signed mega
deals with the Government of Zimbabwe. As the country is endowed with
plenty of natural resources there is scope for diverse business
opportunities, particularly given the need to add value to the various
primary commodities, agricultural and mining in particular.
Economy
Transport
The road network in Zimbabwe is good and about 19,000 kms of main
roads designated as ‗state roads‘ link all major towns and cities. Like in
India, traffic in Zimbabwe moves on the left-hand side of the road
(vehicles are usually right hand-driven). Traffic in the cities is generally
orderly and reasonably regulated. However, accidents particularly on
highways are common because of drunken driving and over-speeding
especially during holidays. A visitor may use a valid driving license from
a foreign country for up to 90 days. If not printed in English, such
license should have a certificate of authenticity and validity or a
translation of the text with the bearer‘s photograph attached. Indian
driving license is valid in Zimbabwe.
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2. India Zimbabwe Trade and Economic Relations
On March 23, 2015, India donated 500 metric tonnes of rice to Zimbabwe to
overcome food-shortages. Besides, India is engaged in human resource
development and capacity building efforts in Zimbabwe under Lines of
Credit and Buyer‘s Credit Scheme of EXIM Bank.
The third edition of India Africa Forum Summit (IAFS-III) was held in New
Delhi from October 26-30, 2015. Our Prime Minister announced the
doubling of scholarships to 50,000 for African nationals. Around US $ 10
billion would be made available as concessional credit and US $ 600 million
as grants over the next five years to whole of the African continent.
Total bilateral trade between the two countries reached US$132.37 million
in the year 2014-15, from a mere US$40 million in 2003-04, more than four
times increase in last eleven years. However, since 2008-09, the trade has
ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016 7
been skewed more and more in favour of India. Even in 2014-15, Indian
exports were more than USD 131.68 million out of a total bilateral trade of
USD 132.37 million.
The trade balance between the countries weighs heavily in favour of India as
revealed in the analysis below of actual trade in the selected three calendar
years:
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The above shows that there is huge scope to increase value added exports
from Zimbabwe to India, and increase manufacturing capacity. Zimbabwe
has many natural resources which can be supplied to India in raw form;
semi processed form and finished goods due to the size of the Indian
market.
Tables 11.2 and Table 11.3 in Annex show the items traded between the two
countries. The biggest export to India is diamond in unworked form or
uncut, followed in a distant second place by tobacco. Other exports are
negligible at values of US$15 000 in 2014. On the import side, India
supplies mostly medical drugs, equipment and electrical components such
as transformers, calibrating meters, and electric conductors. There are also
some manufacturing devices and equipment supplied by India. The biggest
food import from India is rice but the level has dropped in last three years
and is now at a paltry US$1.1 million in 2014. India ranks ninth among the
import sources for Zimbabwe in 2014, at a value of US$131.7 million and in
terms of exports, ranks at number 22 with a meagre US$688 000. This
shows scope for massive development of the manufacturing and trade
activities among the two friendly countries to capitalise on the strong
political relations. To explore this only needs a look at the top imports by
Zimbabwe and one realises that Indian expertise can be used to displace
such imports by developing local manufacturing capacity in each of those
areas. Table 11.7 list the top 100 import items for Zimbabwe.
ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016 9
3. Update on the Indigenisation Program
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Frameworks, Procedures And Guidelines For Implementing The
Indigenization And Economic Empowerment Act [Chapter 14:33]. The
Framework is available on the following link off the Zimbabwe
Investment authority website:
[Link]
ry&layout=blog&id=80&Itemid=701
ZIA, as the investor interface, will process all applications using the
predetermined framework of straightforward IDG01 and IDG02 through
One Stop Shop Indigenisation Ministry representative
During its normal course of processing, ZIA would consult with the line
ministries and the National Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment
Board (NIEEB) which shall play, under the guidance of the Ministry of
Youth, Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment (MYIEE), a
supervisory and monitoring role to ensure Government entities comply
with the Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Act and other set
regulations and policies.
It should be noted that the investors will only interface with ZIA, and the
rest of the processing will be treated as back office processes until the
Compliance Certificate is issued to the investor through ZIA.
The IEE Regulations stipulate in the Third Schedule, sectors that are
reserved for indigenous Zimbabweans. The Table below shows the
sectors to be reserved in favour of indigenous Zimbabweans.
ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016 11
4. Barber shops, hairdressing and beauty salons
5. Employment agencies
6. Estate agencies and Real Estates
7. Bakeries
8. Advertising agencies
9. Provision of local and craft, marketing and distribution
10. Tobacco grading and packaging
11. Cigarette Manufacturing
12. Valet services
13. Milk processing
14. Grain milling
15. Fuel retailing
16. Artisanal mining of all minerals (except diamond)
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4. Zimbabwean Economic Review
Zimbabwe has been for the past few years following the ‗Look East‘
policy, involving countries like China, Iran and India for investments
and credit support. Zimbabwe has also realized that external support is
essential if it has to arrest the negative growth of its economy which has
already reached at the lowest level in the last five years and is making
efforts to re-engage the Bretton Woods institutions. South Africa has
now emerged as the largest trading partner of Zimbabwe followed
strongly by China which is now purchasing 90% of Zimbabwean
exported tobacco.
USD 5.9 billion in 2011; USD 500 per capita in 2011. After registering a
growth rate of around 9% in 2011, GDP grew by 4.4% in 2012 with
inflation rate of around 3.5%. In 2013, GDP grew at 3.4%. Zimbabwe‘s
external debt stood at USD 8.9 billion on 31.12.2013(69% of its GDP).
The key economic statistics are shown below:
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Table 1: Economic Highlights
Year GDP in Billions GDP Growth Inflation (%) Investment (% of
(US$) (%) GDP)
2015 12.4 3.2 1.7 12.7
(est.)
2014 12.0 3.1 1.2 13.7
2013 11.6 3.3 0.3 14.4
2012 11.2 10.6 2.9 14.2
2011 10.2 11.9 4.9 22.4
2010 9.1 11.4 3.2 23.9
2009 8.2 8.2 N/A 15.1
Source: Ministry of Finance, IMF, World Bank, UN, OECD
14 ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016
new equipment, to execute Greenfield projects in the underserviced areas
such as healthcare. Another option is to resuscitate some of the under
capacitated industries and replace or update the equipment. This has been
successfully done by some Indian investors in sectors such as cooking oil
refinery (Grafax, Wilmar), commercial paper products (Paroan Vista), and
mining (RioZim). Automobile products industry has representation from
TATA, who are looking at expanding into other areas.
Road Network
There is a massive programme to dualise the major highways, and work has
started or completed on some of them. Plumtree to Mutare Road has been
completed, and J. M. Nkomo Road (Airport Road) has just been completed
and fitted with solar lighting in late 2015. The busiest road (Beitbridge to
Nyamapanda, passing through Masvingo, Chivhu, Harare, Chinhoyi all the
way to Zambia) is set to commence in 2016 after some legal battle had
stalled progress. Zimbabwe has a relatively dense national road network.
Total road density is 100 km/1,000 sq kms, double the figure for
neighbouring Zambia and almost triple that of Mozambique.
Air Transport
The Harare international airport is the main airport in the country. The
national carrier- Air Zimbabwe maintains regular service between Harare
and London. The other significant airports are Joshua M. Nkomo airport n
ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016 15
Bulawayo which was renovated in 2014. The most exciting development has
been the expansion of Victoria Falls airport which was commissioned in late
2015. It can now handle long haul airplanes, has a 4km runway and can
handle 1.7 million passengers annually. This is set to boost tourism, trade
and investment for Zimbabwe.
Railways
This presents tremendous scope for technology based products, and India is
a global player in this arena. The solid education platform also makes it easy
to introduce value added ICT software and hardware products.
Power
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significant footprint with local presence. There is also a need for new power
stations: thermal, hydro and solar based.
Taxation
ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016 17
5. Investing in Zimbabwe – an outline
Investment Options
Registration Procedures
Name Search –you will propose 5 possible names for the company. You will
do this of CR21 and lodge these in duplicate to the Registrar of Companies.
If a name is confirmed you will be issued with a CV4 confirming the
reservation of that name for you.
Memorandum and Articles of Association – you will then lodge this after
receiving confirmation of name reservation. You lodge these together with
CR14 and CR6 forms. CR14 Form states the company‘s directors and CR6
states the physical address of the company.
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vi. Proof of Finance (the evidence of project finance may be provided in
either bank statements, confirmation letter from a bank, confirmed
bank loans, other confirmed credit facilities and or equipment/
machinery),
vii. Brief resumes/CVs for shareholders and or directors and copies
of identification documents (national ID for Zimbabweans and
passport and / visa/ residence permit for foreigners),
viii. License fee of USD2500 upon approval,
ix. Licence/permit from relevant Regulatory Authority where applicable is
required upfront e.g. Banking and financial services, diamonds
mining, telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, broadcasting,
newspapers and education
The investor shall apply for renewal of the Investment License 3 months
before date of expiry.
All Indian passport holders coming to Zimbabwe need visa which they have
to obtain online before undertaking the journey. Full particulars of
Zimbabwean Embassy in India are as under.
EMAIL: zimnewdelhi@[Link]
WEBSITE: [Link]
OFFICE HOURS: 09.00-16.30
Investment Climate
ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016 19
providers. Technical Working Groups have been established and are working
in the following thematic areas:
• Starting a Business
• Trading across Borders/Paying Taxes
• Getting Credit/Resolving Insolvency and;
• Protecting Minority Investors/Enforcing Contracts
• Registering Property and Dealing with Construction Permits
Zimbabwe has formally accepted the obligations of Article VIII under the IMF
Articles of Agreement, which aim at avoidance of restrictions on current
payments; avoidance of discriminatory currency practices; and convertibility
of foreign-held balances. The country adopted the multicurrency system in
February 2009 and a relaxation of almost all forms of foreign exchange
controls such as:
20 ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016
the Chairman. The country also supports and is part of the moves towards
establishment of the Tripartite Free Trade Area (involving COMESA, SADC
and East African Community (EAC) Zimbabwe is also a Member of the
Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) which provides political
risk insurance, technical assistance and dispute mediation facilities. The
country is a member of the International Centre for Settlement for
Investment Disputes (ICSID) which provides facilities for conciliation and
arbitration of international investment disputes. It is also member to the
following organizations.
Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC)
United Nations Convention on International Trade Law
(UNCITRAL)
New York Convention on the Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral
Awards.
Promotion of Competition
Taxation Incentives
ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016 21
Build Operate Transfer (BOT) and Build Own Operate Transfer (BOOT)
projects are taxed at a variable rate depending on the years of operation.
It is 0% for the initial five years and increases to 25% after 16 years.
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6. Role of the Zimbabwe Investment Authority
The establishment of the One Stop Shop (OSS) at ZIA was motivated by the
following factors:
The need to streamline approval processes
Approval of Investment procedures was complex and lengthy,
characterised by blockages/bottlenecks at different institutional levels
Administrative procedures posed serious impediments to investment
Investment promotion actions not enough without conducive
environment
The current OSS configuration hosts the following bodies, with fully
furnished offices available for each of them, within the ZIA building.
ZIA
Registrar of Companies
Department of Immigration Control
Zimbabwe Revenue Authority
Ministry of Mines and Mining Development
Environmental Management Agency
Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing
Ministry of Youth Development, Indigenisation and Economic
Empowerment, and lately
National Social Security Authority
The whole model is being revised with the following thrust to ensure it
delivers the required services and efficiencies to investors:
i. Developing a supporting robust legal framework
ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016 23
ii. Capitalising on the Doing Business reform initiatives already
underway
iii. Capitalising on the e-Government initiative already underway
iv. Developing online and consolidated registration facilities for various
agencies
v. Sharing of investor data by different data thus eliminating duplicate
form filling and repetitive information provision
vi. Online and mobile payment facilities
vii. Eliminating, combining and rationalizing the various registration
procedures that investors go through
Bulawayo Branch
Fidelity Life Centre, Fife Street&10th Avenue,
P.O. Box 399
Ascot, Bulawayo,
Tel: +263 9 65335, 65319, 65347, 65342-3,
Fax: +263 9 65345,
Email: nhamburo@[Link]
24 ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016
7. Opening a Representative Office
3. The Ministry in turn issues a Licence for a Place of Business and the
Registrar of Companies in turn issues a certificate of incorporation.
4. The foreign company then applies to ZIA on official letterhead for
authority to establish the representative office (written letter, no form
to be completed) supported by the following details:
The purpose for setting up the representative office
Profile of the parent company (applicant) including nature of
business, shareholding, country of registration (certificate of
incorporation and registered office to be availed)
The principal representatives of the company in Zimbabwe
How the office will be funded. Please note such offices are to be
funded 100% by the parent company from offshore resources
Any benefits to be derived from the office by the country e.g.
employment
The licence for a place of business, certificate of incorporation,
CR14 and CR6 as issued by the Ministry of Justice and Registrar of
Companies should accompany the application.
ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016 25
Normally, representative offices are granted approval by ZIA on the following
conditions:
i. Office expenses to be entirely sourced offshore from Zimbabwe.
ii. The office will not participate in any economic activities such as loans
whose end result would be foreign exchange liability for the country of
any form.
iii. The office will also strictly adhere to the agreed activities, and not
engage in any economic activities other than what it has been
established for, without first seeking the approval of the Zimbabwe
Investment Authority e.g. manufacturing or trading.
iv. Investment The office will also strictly adhere to the agreed activities,
and not engage in any economic activities other than what it has been
established for, without first seeking the approval of the Zimbabwe
Investment Authority e.g. manufacturing or trading.
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8. Investment Opportunities
Zimbabwe has several major minerals that rank amongst the top 10 global
resources giving it the status of a global resource country. Zimbabwe also
has a reasonably developed infrastructure base as compared to its peers,
including power, roads, ICT, and water. The country is well positioned
geographically and linked with its neighbours when it comes to power and
transport networks, allowing Zimbabwe to participate in regional trade and
act as a critical transit country for landlocked neighbours Zambia and
Botswana and a key link in the North-South Corridor.
Mining and Quarrying Platinum; Diamonds; Iron ore; Coal; Gold, Chrome
Beneficiation (polishing, smelting, refining);
Exploration
ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016 27
Sector Sub Sectors
Agriculture
Manufacturing
The broad based manufacturing sector produces more than 6,000 products
or commodities including food and clothing fertilizers and chemicals, metal
products of all kinds, electrical machinery/equipment and motor vehicle
assembly. India is particularly invited to extend its success in low cost
energy efficient automobile technologies such as the three wheel electric
cars.
Energy
Zimbabwe is facing a huge power deficit exacerbated by the low water levels
in Kariba Dam, and absence of investment over the years in new plants.
Further to this, many existing companies and even power plants use old
&inefficient technologies. The Government of India has extended an US$87
million line of credit for the upgrade of Harare Thermal Power station. An
Indian firm, Jaguar Overseas Limited has also recently won the tender to
upgrade Bulawayo Thermal Power station. This is due to the old inefficient
technologies used. There is also massive scope for off grid installations
(using renewable energies) witnessed at some universities in India and the
TERI RETREAT Campus. This can easily be applied with some innovative
local establishments. India can also capitalize on the abundant sunshine to
28 ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016
manufacture solar energy appliances and implements such as solar panels,
inverters, regulators and batteries.
The mining sector is a major earner of foreign currency for the country. The
sector performed well supported by the government, legislation, fiscal
environment and good infrastructure. The country possesses rich deposits of
more than 40 types of minerals. There exist opportunities in diamond, gold,
platinum, chrome, coal, asbestos and iron ore mining and the scope for
investment in rebuilding the exploration and mining support services such
as sample preparation and analysis (rock, chemical), non-destructive and
drilling.
Tourism
Vast opportunities exist for deployment of modern ICT devices, services and
extending the same across other sectors. This is due to the high
urbanization rate (34%) and the high young-rural population mix coupled
with the high literacy rate above 90%. There are opportunities in Hardware
and software development, data centres, contact centres, mobile devices and
accessories, techno-innovations, payment systems and related areas. India
has established itself as the contact centre capital of the world due to good
spoken English and low technology costs as well as low labour costs.
Zimbabwe has an emergent contact centre industry which could benefit
from Indian expertise, and it may be the birth of another Business Process
Outsourcing (BPO) boom out of Southern Africa.
Zimbabwe has generally been a hub in the region for health and educational
facilities. There has been deterioration in this situation due to economic
decline but the opportunities remain. These two sub sectors also enjoy
inelastic demand and are known to be prioritized in expenditure among
Zimbabwe households. A special opportunity exists for Indian medical know
ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016 29
how in the form of drug manufacture and specialist services (diagnosis,
analysis, surgeries, oncology etc). This is because of the homogeneity of the
conditions in India and Zimbabwe such that drugs suitable in India can
easily be applied here.
The third edition of the IAFS summit took place during 26th-30th October
2015 which enabled consultations at the highest political level between the
Heads of Government of 54 nations across Africa and the Indian government
to give a new thrust to our age-old partnership. It provides an opportunity to
not only reflect on the past, but to define the road ahead in tune with the
times we live in.
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ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016 31
Hagadol Enterprises Private Limited delivers specialised,
innovative and diversified solutions to the power, ICT,
infrastructure, health expanding into all regions, locally
and internationally.
Zimbabwe Office
82 Mutare Road | Msasa, Harare | Zimbabwe
+263 4 485 745-6
+263 772 402 595
admin@[Link] | [Link]
ZIMBABWEBUSINESSGUIDE2016 55
BUSINESS infra- energy trade education healthcare
SOLUTIONS structure branding
MAHINDRA ZIMBABWE
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