YESTERDAY, we carried a story titled Govt whips errant Chinese miners, where the Environmental Management Agency (Ema) shut down two Chinese mines for operating without the required licences.
The two companies Riverlion (Pvt) Ltd and Baimei Investments were operating on either side of the Sanyati River.
Ema said Riverlion (Pvt) Ltd was engaged in riverbed mining activities along Sanyati River, with open workings and a wash plant within the river.
The company was excavating and modifying the river channel as defined in the Environmental Management Act [Chapter 20:27] as read with Statutory Instrument 7 of 2007, as well as storage and usage of hazardous substances without the required licence from the agency according to Statutory Instrument 268 of 2018.
Ema said Baimei Investments had cleared land on the adjacent mountain for exploration purposes but it did not have the required environmental impact assessment certificate.
This is but one example in which investors fail to conform to the country’s laws.
Keep Reading
- Veld fire management strategies for 2022
- Stop harassing media for reporting truth
- Veld fire management strategies for 2022
- News in depth: Mnangagwa’s push for $12 billion mining industry imperils communities
There are several cases in which the so-called investors do as they please, obviously with the protection of political heavyweights or bureaucrats in government.
There are reports of violation of labour laws and that employees work without personal protective equipment, endangering their safety and health.
There are reports of the so-called investors beating up locals.
The retail sector is, according to law, reserved for locals. The situation on the ground tells a different story.
The so-called investors, especially those running tuckshops in downtown Harare, do not pay taxes, shun plastic money and resultantly banking.
They only sell in cash and God knows where the money goes to as it is not circulating in the economy.
Have we become so gullible in our search for investors that we allow them to flout local regulations at will?
Zimbabwe has been on a drive to lure foreign investors that have in the past given the country a wide berth due to policy inconsistencies.
At the heart of President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s Zimbabwe is open for business thrust has been the need to simplify processes and provide a conducive environment to attract prospective investors.
The Zimbabwe Investment Development Agency (Zida) has simplified the licensing process, introducing an online do-it-yourself (DIY) portal.
In its third quarter report, Zida said the DIY portal fuelled a 9% increase in the number of licences issued in the period under review from the previous quarter.
“The increase in the number of licences issued is linked to the improvement in the licensing process, confirming that investors have embraced using the online DIY Licensing Portal,” it said.
“However, during this period, the agency recorded a 66% decrease in the projected investment values, when compared to the same period in 2023.”
The DIY portal is meant to shorten the licensing period.
This encourages prospective investors to exercise patience and conform to laws.
When investors wilfully violate a country’s laws, they must not be seen as investors, but criminals that must face the full wrath of the law.
The law must be applied without fear or favour.
Zimbabwe is not a Mickey Mouse country.