By Jonathan Mbiriyamveka
UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator Mr Edward Kallon says given the economic and human capital endowments Zimbabwe is blessed with, the framework for economic diplomacy should seek twin commercial interest with strategic foreign policy aims, broadly defined, and further recognise that all foreign economic policy is ultimately also domestic.
Addressing Diplomatic Forum organised by Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the sidelines of the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair, Mr Kallon said the setting of trade and investment policy should position a country optimally in a global economy in which trade in goods and services and data are growing in prominence.
“Second, economic diplomacy should be driven by strategic domestic considerations, by promoting inclusive economic growth – with distributional impact across layers of society to realise sustainable development,” he said.
Mr Kallon also gave some vital reflection for a move towards the noble goal including:
First, positioning the country as an investment hub. To harness both foreign and domestic investment to exploit the country’s natural resource potential maximally and sustainably.
This includes mineral resources, agriculture, and tourism – to stimulate productivity, inclusive economic growth, and development. The human resource capacities in the country are an added advantage.
Second, enhancing private sector development strategies. There is a need to strengthen private sector development, including through appropriate public-private sector partnerships.
A strong private sector can act as an automatic stabilizer, and lay ground for economic recovery, in the face of current and future crises. Zimbabwe’s private sector including (MSMEs) need capacity enhancement to fully participate in regional and international value chains.
Third, promote export growth. Under the NDS, Zimbabwe targets export-led growth by promoting value added export products and export markets diversification.
Zimbabwe’s membership in the various regional blocs offer expanded market opportunities for both raw materials and exports including: the recently signed African Continental Free Trade Area; SADC; COMESA; African Caribbean and Pacific States/European Union Agreement; and the WTO.
Fourth, continue to push forward and consolidate economic reforms. Key to this is a stable monetary and exchange rate policy that reinforces gains made on the fiscal front. There is need to accelerate progress on this front and such progress should be encouraged and consolidated to anchor strong foundations for a stable macro-economic environment.
Fifth, create an enabling business environment & Build stakeholder confidence through broad based dialogue.
This requires inclusive processes for stakeholder engagement, dialogue, and information sharing, to pull together all stakeholders towards a common vision for the country that guides economic diplomacy.
Indeed, non-state actors play a pivotal role in economic diplomacy both by ‘shaping government policies and as independent players in their own right’.
And, lastly, addressing key challenges around sovereign risk: There is a need to continue to promote and deepen dialogue between Government, bilateral and multilateral partners to address key challenges.
“Africa is the next economic frontier and preferred destination and Zimbabwe’s place in this anticipated new dispensation is not in doubt,” he said.
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