Desire Sibanda, the Secretary for Economic Planning and Investment Promotion, said a similar meeting held last year resulted in a number of deals being signed and was hopeful of an even better response this time.
“The problem is that sometimes when deals are signed, companies do not report to us, but some industrialists who attended the meeting told us that some SA companies have started to invest. We were able to discuss the relationship between the two countries and how we can enhance trade. The spirit was very high and people realised that Zimbabwe is one of the fastest-growing economies in Africa,” he said.
“There is a lot we can do in terms of joint ventures. The problem is that we mostly import finished products from SA and this has turned the country into some kind of supermarket. We agreed on the need for our companies to partner with SA companies to focus on manufacturing.”