The seeds have been sown

04 Feb, 2018 - 00:02 0 Views

The Sunday Mail

Clemence Machadu
Insight
We should move away from the status quo to become an economic ally which can be entrusted with their funds to invest in the country.

Howdy folks!

It is always difficult to reconcile perceptions, expectations and reality. A good understanding is, however, arrived at from reconciling the three.

And when it comes to the recent World Economic Forum which Zimbabwean authorities had an opportunity to attend in Davos, it appears that some folks still have their perceptions and expectations far removed from reality, which creates a particular scenario with certain impressions that need to be punctuated.

There are some folks with an erroneous impression that Zimbabwean authorities should have descended from the Swiss Alps town of Davos laden with mega deals running into billions of dollars on their shoulders.

Kungonhonga madhiri akarohwa nechando as the snow buries the WEF venue.

Should things have really happened that way?

Going to Davos, in my view, was never about instantly bringing truckloads of dollars; or was it? Who will be foolish or naïve enough to give you money on first encounter?

It’s about engagement folks and building fruitful relationships first.

These are the first things that should come first.

And that does not happen in a few days.

Even when courting a girl, you should not expect her to say yes that same day.

She has to do her due diligence first, but the important thing is that your engagement would have put your matter under consideration.

So, the reality of the matter is that the annual gathering of top business and political leaders in Davos actually offered President Mnangagwa an opportunity to advance Zimbabwe’s interests and sow the seeds of investment and trust.

His ability to convince key people also helped improve global confidence in his leadership and administration, which has only been in power for just over two months.

You see, prior to that journey to Davos, President Mnangagwa was already embarking on a regional blitz to meet with leaders and update them on the situation in Zimbabwe.

The Davos meeting, therefore, reinforced this agenda by cementing relationship building on a broader scale.

Folks, Davos gave the country’s leader a rare chance to meet all the important people at once. Imagine, it probably could have taken President Mnangagwa years to meet all those key people who are scattered in various parts of the world.

In other words, how else could he have taken a single flight and got to meet with all global players under one roof?

Interaction is important, folks, especially with the right people.

In business, it’s people talking to people, not buildings talking to business. The backbone of successful business is trust. And this trust can only be built through these personal interactions and higher level commitments being shown by the new administration to set the right tone for Zimbabwe.

We should, therefore, never judge the real value of Davos based on the mere themes of the conference.

Neither should we judge value on the basis of the negative stuff that some bitter devils are peddling.

Devils and devil incarnates can never say anything positive; we should understand that it is their nature.

Some have failed dismally to destroy the country from within and without. Why should their voices sound like that of angels now?

The real value from Davos is the ability of Zimbabwe to efficiently conduct global business. You will realise that even big companies in the world now regard Davos as a global business conference that provides them with opportunities to meet titans of industry, global financiers, heads of state, economists and other key stakeholders to take their businesses to the next level.

Zimbabwe has to be taken to the next level of economic prosperity at the quickest possible time.

Interestingly, the global narrative is also changing for the better, which mirrors how the world has a new perspective of the country that is informed by the new administration’s efforts.

For the first time in many years, Zimbabwe has been making international headlines for the right reasons.

Some of them are as follows: “Zimbabwe is ‘open for business’, new president Emmerson Mnangagwa tells Davos” (CNBC); “Mnangagwa’s ‘new’ Zimbabwe merits support” (Financial Times) and “Zimbabwe’s new President seeks to rebuild ties with the West” (Financial Times).

Folks, the road to Davos was also a Damascene encounter of sorts which awakened the new dispensation to the prevailing global realities and provoked them to pull up their socks.

The era of voodoo economics is over and in its place is now the reality that Zimbabwe needs the world and has to swallow its pride.

Gone are the days when we used to say, “Keep your England and let me keep my Zimbabwe.”

If England has the spare parts we need to fly, and if Zimbabwe can export beef and other products to England; why should there be bad blood between the two nations?

Our new message, “Zimbabwe is open for business”, was also scrutinised in Davos to help our authorities to gauge whether it matches action being taken.

In other words, our leaders were given the yardstick to measure whether the door for coming to do business in Zimbabwe is fully open, half open or is completely shut.

Davos was a signal by the new administration that it wants to get out of its comfort zone and subject itself to international critique and accountability.

That said, moving forward, Zimbabwe now has to focus on improving political relations with the world. Every single dime that we expect to get from abroad, whether bilateral or multilateral, is hinged on politics.

For instance, while the International Monetary Fund is telling us to clear our arrears with other international financial organisations in order for the country to get a financial programme; we should know that it’s actually the politics that will decide our fate.

Folks, these Bretton Woods institutions are run by member governments, but not on the basis of one country, one vote.

Each country’s vote is determined by the amount of money they pay to these institutions. In other words, more money more votes.

And America has the lion’s share of votes in both the IMF and the World Bank. It is, therefore, pointless to be in good books with the IMF and the World Bank but be in bad books with America and its close allies.

We must, therefore, start taming the demons that tainted our political relations with them.

As for Donald Trump, there is no harm in making sure that he plays golf with Zimbabwe’s President while learning to pronounce “Mnangagwa” correctly.

Folks, as voting patterns at the IMF are always influenced by each country’s foreign policy on the particular matter, we must know that when it comes to Zimbabwe, America will always consider its existing policy on Zimbabwe, which is where Zidera comes in.

You will also realise that even in terms of bilateral investment sources, America tops; followed by China, the Netherlands, Japan and Canada, to make the Big Five.

Zimbabwe should therefore, also strengthen relations with these countries to ensure they make economic decisions that are in our interest.

A look at our current relationship with these five countries can be portrayed by our current trade patterns with them, whereby we are exporting virtually nothing to them yet importing a lot of finished goods from them.

In the first 11 months of last year, for instance, Zimbabwe’s exports to the United States were US$1,7 million while imports stood at US$39,54 million.

The country’s exports to China, the Netherlands and Japan also stood at US$961 000, US$1,97 million and US$76 000; with imports being US$431 million, US$19 million and US$120 million, respectively.

The same goes for Canada where we exported paltry consignments worth US$47 709 and imported goods worth US$15 million.

When you look at these trading patterns, you will realise that our relationship with many such countries doesn’t go anywhere beyond Zimbabwe just being a trading market for their finished goods.

We should move away from the status quo to become an economic ally which can be entrusted with their funds to invest in the country.

Folks, the post-Davos discourse in the country should be dominated by dichotomising our ability to finish what we have started.

Yes, we desperately need foreign investment; but is the environment on the ground conducive enough to sustain that investment?

Capital, as they say, is coward. What must we do?

Later folks!

Clemence Machadu is an economist, researcher and consultant.

 

 

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