Zimpapers Logo

Africa, 10 days ago.

I was left baffled and bewildered. Which Zimbabwe was he talking about? Can a journalist discussing a particular subject be so out of touch with reality? What has happened to the profession or are some things twisted to suit a certain agenda?

The last time I checked, it was mandatory for a journalist to be up to speed with any issue he is writing about or discussing so they can communicate effectively.
How does a country that has experienced an average 7 percent growth over the last four years be described as “obviously not growing”?

Zimbabwe’s economy has actually grown phenomenally over the last fours years, surpassing  target. In 2009 the economy grew by 5,5 percent, in 2010 it was 6,3 percent. The highest growth was achieved in 2011 at 9,3 percent which softened to 5,7 percent in 2012. This year a growth of 5,2 percent has been forecast.

These figures make  Zimbabwe’s economy one of the fastest growing on the continent. The largest economy, South Africa, expects a growth of 2,7 percent this year – about half what Zimbabwe anticipates.

Of course, its a fact that even the International Monetary Fund refuses to acknowledge it, but the growth is there for all to see. The only challenge is that the country was coming from a low base and the growth has not immediately translated into a high standard of living for Zimbabweans.

Coincidentally, a day before the boob by the journalist, I met Dairibord chief executive Mr Anthony Mandiwanza, who was attending the Forum meetings as well. He was literally fuming saying that a separate meeting he had attended prior to the WEF had also seen people speaking about Zimbabwe as a “failed” state with nothing going for it.

He said there was so much misinformation doing the rounds about Zimbabwe.
“When you hear people saying Zimbabwe is a failed state and you ask them what are the indications of a failed state, you will see that nothing comes anywhere close to resembling Zimbabwe,” we quoted Mr Mandiwanza as saying.

“There are not many countries in Southern Africa that have been achieving that kind of growth. The issue is that we have been distorted for too long and we need to have a strategic response to that, which starts at the national level, to say how we could package and present our country. There are so many positives which some international business leaders have no absolute clue about,” he added.

Precisely my point! What all this simply means is that Zimbabwe needs to up its game in terms of its public relations campaign. The untruths that continue to be peddled about this country are unfortunate and quite lethal. Certain decisions about this country, be they business or political, are being made based on wrong information.

We wonder if this misinformation is intentionally as people seek to advance certain positions or could it be that Zimbabwe has not done its part to inform the world about what is happening here.

We have had initiatives such as brand Zimbabwe while the Ministry of Tourism and Hospitality Industry has also used numerous platforms to market Zimbabwe but what the country now needs is a more holistic and aggressive approach to correct all the half-truths and untruths that has left the world misinformed about this country.

Perception is always as good as fact and we would not want this country to miss out on opportunities because of perceptions that we seem to have allowed to continue unchallenged.

Government, the private sector, the academia, civil society and other stakeholders need to team up and launch a sustainable campaign so that the real truth about Zimbabwe gets to the world.

We have been rated lowly on all global indices and this, not based on fact but mere assumption. It is costing this country big time in terms of investment, finance facilities, markets and other opportunities which could have left us somewhere by now.

The economy has immense potential to grow even faster once Zimbabwe achievements are effectively communicated to the rest of the world. There is so much going well for Zimbabwe but each time we are shocked when in a foreign land someone asks you a question that reflects that they are out of touch with what is happening in Zimbabwe.

The country’s name has become synonymous with poverty, political unrest and everything bad and yet things are not as bad as they are made to appear.
In fact, this economy may have its challenges but we are not a failed state. We are not under curatorships and there is no justification for any form of curatorship by any regional or international body. We actually have shops, state-of the-art buildings, technology, etc.

We are still far from achieving the best that we can but we are certainly do not belong to a rubbish pit.
This needs to be communicated clearly. This strategy should not be part of Vision 2020 or 2030. It needs implementation as soon as possible. We even need to shrug off the too much talk syndrome and engage into an action mode.

Something certainly needs to be done expeditiously.
For how long must we allow lies upon lies to be peddled about our country? For how long shall we just scoff at it and do nothing about correcting the situation?
Must we tell lies to portray this country in positive light? No. Do we exaggerate our achievements? Certainly not. Do we adopt the see no evil, hear no evil and speak no evil mode?

Definitely not! Yet the need to project the right image of Zimbabwe beckons now more than ever before.

Feedback

Below is an email I received in response to my instalment on the need for all stakeholders to rally behind Air Zimbabwe.

Thank you so much for the article in the Herald of May 9, 2013 regarding support for Airzim.  I agree with you 100 percent, but let me say that it will also need a staff overhaul for Airzim staff for the support to stick. In March 2013 my wife was in Cape Town and I wanted her to return on an Airzim flight from Jhb. So I called the Airzim number –  I only got a response on the third attempt and I asked for Reservations and no one picked the phone until I was cut off.

I dialled again and I was a bit irritated and I did mention to the person on the other end of the phone so she again transferred me to Reservations and again no one picked up the phone until again I got cut off. I dialled again and this time I asked for Public Relations because I was really pissed off. To my surprise the PR office was equally uninterested. They said, “Well I think the guys at Reservations have gone for lunch”, but I insisted I wanted to make a reservation so he pushed me through to Reservations and finally someone responded.

Before I said what I wanted I had to register my displeasure and this guy just said, “Well I am alone here, so I had gone out” and he gave me a reference, but because I had already lost my patience I had to settle for SAA despite the fact that it was more expensive because there I got the response on the second ring and within three minutes it was over.

With this kind of attitude Airzim may not take off . We certainly need Airzim on our local and regional flights but also on the long-haul route (Harare/London) as it is a very convenient way to travel and also kind to our budget.

I think with Airzim there has been a lot of meddling from politicians and the major   shareholder and it has been so messed up and rendered unattractive for any strategic partner I am sorry to say. I  regret to say that as much as I advocate for support for Airzim, I think a lot of housekeeping is required to enable the recovery strategy to succeed. – Simba Takawira.

In God I trust.

l Feedback: [email protected]