Harare – Zimbabwe should join the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) or introduce a local currency that will twin the value Common Monetary Area so as to ease the cost of doing business in the country, says CodChem Managing Director, Dr Marah Havatigone.

 Dr Hativagone aired her concerns at the recent SMEs International Business Expo pointing that the cost of doing business is a hindrance to the nation’s competitiveness in the region and the 2 percent transaction tax has made it an even larger hurdle.

“Zimbabwe should consider joining the rand monetary board so as to level up in cost of doing business or introducing a local currency that will twin the value of the SACU which is allied the Common Monetary Area (CMA).

“This will fuel productivity so as to service the export market. She added that “instead of heavily concentrating on taxing people let us make sure we push exports to generate more foreign currency”.

According to economists the stance will fuel momentum in exports that have been growing for the past couple of months, however, at a low pace fast as the growth of imports.

Zimbabwe’s trade deficit has breached the -$2 billion as at September 30^th, which is ahead of the total deficit incurred in the full year to December 2017 of -$1.8 billion a sign of sustained imports pressure.

Cumulative imports for the 9 months period came in at $5.07 billion while exports lagged at $3.01 billion resulting in the $2.01 billion deficit.

The deficit compares worse off to a cumulative deficit in the same period last year of -$1.5 billion a variance of -$500 million.

However joining the CMA has its drawback of facing competition from more established businesses, though this would be the least of business problems considering that the SI 122 would be in effect.

Local businesses will suffer competition from the parallel market more to say the Cross Border Association, as the cost of doing business would be more stable now.

Another hindrance’s to the country joining the Rand Monetary Union will be the lack of Zimbabwean currency and the consideration of where South Africa stands in its economic performance and its ability to supple the SACU with its currency.

The country also has to face the legal framework of the CMA which makes it almost impossible to unilaterally adopt the rand without infringing on the agreement that binds the Rand Union member States as appended to a 1974 pact signed as the basis for the formation of the Common Market Area (CMA) agreement.

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