Cross border traders seek  space in economic recovery

Rumbidzayi Zinyuke Herald Reporter

The Zimbabwe Cross Border Traders Association has called on the Government to give them space to make meaningful contributions to the national vision by addressing issues of price distortions and exchange volatility, promoting exports in the region, gender empowerment and creation of employment.

In a statement, the association’s general secretary Mr Augustine Tawanda, said it was important for the Government to recognise cross border traders as strategic economic players.

“Despite the absence of official data and statistics about the sector’s contribution to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and misrepresentations from some quarters, cross border traders can make a huge difference in restoring livelihoods. They have the capacity to contribute to the national vision,” he said.

He said Zimbabweans were being forced to pay through the nose for goods that could be imported from the region at competitive prices as some local producers were profiteering in the name of protecting jobs.

“Given operating space, cross border traders can bring sanity in this area, if the government temporarily lifts import restrictions on some basic commodities which are being overcharged and allow cross border traders to freely import these goods.

“This will force local producers to reduce the prices to regional parity levels. Cross border traders can also increase exports into the region if supportive mechanisms are put in place,” said Mr Tawanda.

On financial inclusion and gender empowerment, he said the Association was concerned that stimulus packages set up by the Ministry of Women Affairs and Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development were not easily accessible to cross border traders and those operating in the informal economy.

“It is common cause that the Zimbabwe economy is heavily informal and that the informal sector has more forex than players in the formal sector so what is needed is to increase flows from the informal economy to the formal by creating a win-win situation where formal economy players receive forex from cross border traders without risk of falling foul with the law,” he said.

He said Government could not formalise without engaging informal economy representatives, hence there was an urgent need for a rethink of disbursement modalities for loans earmarked for marginalised groups in order to restore livelihoods of the disadvantaged as well as bring in transparency and accountability in these processes.

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