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Farirai Machivenyika, Senior Reporter
ZIMBABWE Newspapers Group (1980) Limited Board Chairman Dr Charles Utete has urged the diversified media group to embrace Government’s economic blueprint the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation and educate the nation on its contents.
Dr Utete said this in a speech at the end of a two-day strategic planning workshop attended by the company’s management in Harare.
“We are now in the third year of our five-year strategic path and we need to have our feet continuously on the pedal. The year 2014 is also premised on the Zim Asset programme which all of us need to embrace. Let’s play our part, especially as the media who have the duty to inform, educate and spur the nation to greater heights of achievement,” he said.
Dr Utete said the prospects for the company in 2014 were brighter and called on management to continuously craft strategies that maintain Zimpapers as the market leader.
“You the managers of this company have an inescapable duty to be creative and innovative and surmount problems in the operating environment especially by making full and profitable use of the new equipment that is now in place. The company has managed to re-tool in this operating environment, therefore it is now your duty to make sure that these assets are fully utilised for the benefit of both the company and its shareholders.
“The company’s dream of becoming a fully integrated media house is only a stone’s throw away, as we are gearing for the TV project to complete the five year programme,” Dr Utete said.
The company installed a new US$2,2 million fully automated Orient X-Cel digital printing press last year that has improved efficiency.
Apart from producing high quality newspapers it can also print semi-commercial products such as gloss paper pull outs, fliers and pamphlets.
Dr Utete also urged the company to keep abreast with the latest trends in the media market.
“I am sure you are aware of the escalating migration of readers and advertisers from the print media to digital platforms. It is therefore incumbent upon you to follow where the money is by developing products which are preferred by the ever changing market. If you snooze you lose. Let’s keep track of the marker trends and exploit them fully,” he said.
The workshop was held under the theme, “Consolidating and sweating the assets for increased profitability and growth.”