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Victoria Ruzvidzo Business Focus
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.

“The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”

These were the wise words spoken by former United States President Theodore Roosevelt in Paris, France, on April 23, 1910. They held true then and so do they even today not just for America or his Paris audience then but for all of us.

Roosevelt spoke about being action-oriented and participating actively if you want things done. Whether you succeed or falter is another thing but one should find themselves in the field of play to help shape or influence their destiny.

We should not just whine, murmur or complain but it is about what one has done to make a difference. Progress comes out of hard work, out of sweat and blood and not mere commentary, most of it uninformed even.

Zimbabweans need to take heed of the words of wisdom above as the country seeks to navigate the rough terrain (both literally and metaphorically) that the economy is experiencing presently. Its not just about what the Government can do for me or what the local authority can do but is about what we can all do to make things better.

While it is important and even healthy to constructively criticise certain aspects of policy or programmes that we may not be comfortable with, it is always advisable to ensure that we do not do so from the terraces but we should be in the field of play, contributing to rebuilding the economy in the best possible manner.

It is not just about Delta and Econet creating jobs but it is also about entrepreneurs who should stand up to the challenge and run their own ventures which can also employ a number of people.

It is not just about Marondera Municipality filling every pothole in the town and providing clean water to drink but it is also about responsible residents who take the initiative to repair their roads. Residents who employ water-harnessing and conservation strategies that release pressure on the inadequate supplies in the town.

It is not just about firms mourning about the absence of finance facilities to retool but it is also about these firms negotiating private supply or barter deals in their quest to ensure production efficiencies.

It is not just about companies applying strategies to avoid the painful retrenchment route, but it is about the employees and management, individually and collectively, applying processes and systems that cut costs and enhance revenue for the companies to stay afloat.

It is not just about the Government providing inputs under the Command Agriculture Programme but it is also about the farmers behaving responsibly. It is about the farmers ensuring they put the inputs to good use without selling them or practicing cellphone farming and compromising yields in the process.

In fact, under the land reform programme, it should not just be about Government parcelling out land but it is also about beneficiaries putting the land to good use.

We have heard stories about beneficiaries vandalising equipment on farms and doing very little or no production at all on large tracts of land. This compromises output and adversely impacts on the performance of agriculture hence its poor contribution to the Gross Domestic Product.

Furthermore, it is not just about the Zimbabwe Investment Authority embarking on missions to attract investment and ensure Zimbabwe is on the investment map. It is also about business people, the diaspora and those that come into contact with investors, putting in a good word about the country without necessarily exaggerating the state of affairs in Zimbabwe.

On this one, I like the patriotism that Americans are known for. They fight and nag each other back home but outside their borders they defend their country to the bone. To the outside world they give the impression that all is well and that America is the best thing to have happened to mankind.

This is what we should do about Zimbabwe. Its true that so many systems have gone off tangent but should we shoot ourselves in the foot by telling investors to take their money elsewhere while we tell tourists to stay away from this country?

So in this arena we should take the responsibility of branding our country and telling those interested that things are not as bad as they the perception out there. Must we lie? No! We must tell the truth in a positive and progressive way.

We need to be proactive to get things done, to get the economy back on track. And when we are in the arena are we building or destroying?

The past few weeks and months have seen the prices of most basic goods and services going up. Imported products have become expensive in the formal shops since the introduction of Statutory Instrument 64 although customers get a reprieve in the informal sectors.

The rand has generally been weaker against the United States dollar and simple economics would dictate that the products should be cheaper here but this has not been the case.

AS the central banks seeks to promote the use of plastic money, a common phenomenon globally, consumers here are being punished for it. With lower prices being charged for those buying with cash. Are we in the arena?

When the central bank launched bond notes to incentivise exporters and ease cash shortages, speculators begin to assign lower value to the bond notes despite the central bank’s insistence that the two are of similar value.

Corruption continues to cost the country billions of dollars but it is a vice being perpetrated even more aggressively.

Last week I heard of a company that had intended to set a plant here but was frustrated by the corruption-riddled processes here and they ended up establishing themselves in another country. What is our role in the arena?

Some critics and analysts always seem to be clever after an event with the benefit of hindsight but that is not necessarily the way to go. Be in the arena in the first place.

If we all do the best we can for this country, we would experience less headaches and few grey hair. Our families, communities and the nation at large would be much higher on the ladder or progress instead of tinkering on the brink of collapse.

Hyper-inflation would be a word we would not want to read or hear about again instead of speculating and profiteering in a manner that threatens to bring back that said epoch.

In God I trust.

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