ZIMBABWEANS are buying cakes abroad, even offals, in an importation frenzy that defies logic.
Of the US$5,5 billion spent on imports last year, about one billion was splashed on groceries that included luxuries such as cakes, mineral water, dough, buns, chocolates, sweets and biscuits.
These products are in abundance at home, even at competitive prices.
Government is struggling to get its head around Zimbabweans’ ‘love affair’ with imports especially imports of unnecessary luxurious products.
Finance and Economic Development Minister, Patrick Chinamasa has raised concern over the soaring import bill.
“When you are always eating, eating, eating and you are not saving for your house or to buy a bike, that is ‘import-mania’ – you are crazy,” said Chinamasa last year.
“It’s always difficult to characterise craziness on a national basis, but that basically is what we are – very crazy.”
And he couldn’t have said it better.
Despite all the problems the country is facing, we have been making them worse, all by ourselves.
If Zimbabweans can import trivial goods such as mineral water and sweets then we are definitely crazy.
And will obviously not see the importance of buying local products.
The country’s reliance on imports continues to drain the economy after registering a negative trade balance of US$271, 1 million in January alone, latest trade data shows.
Information from the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT) shows that goods worth US$538, 2 million were imported while exports stood at US$267 million.
Presenting the 2015 National Budget last year Minister Chinamasa projected that merchandise imports would jump to US$6,6 billion this year compared to last year’s US$5,5 billion.
The 2014 CZI Manufacturing Sector Survey indicates that fierce competition from emerging economies, particularly Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRICS), threatened to throw domestic producers out of business.
The CZI opines that local companies have capacity to meet demand.
However, local companies are struggling to regain markets lost to imports because their prices are deemed to be on the expensive side as a result of high production costs.
Chief among things making local products expensive compared to imports include unreliable and costly utilities and unfair tax regimes on raw materials.
United Refineries Limited chief executive officer and President of the Matabeleland Chamber of Industries Busisa Moyo said the habit of importing has become a cultural issue that Zimbabweans need to unlearn to save the economy.
“People need to understand the impact of their decisions on the economy.
“The US$5 billion we export every year through imports could be used to beef up domestic business,” said Moyo.
“If we have people taking billions of dollars out of the country to bring finished goods home, it’s a problem. This activity is costing the country.”
Of what significance to the economy is bringing mineral water from South Africa?
If that entrepreneur, importing water, is a Zimbabwean, then they need a basic education on patriotism.
Zimbabweans should discard the perception that anything foreign was better and good.
“That’s our greatest enemy, and we have to deal with it. Such perceptions are temporary and our people need to change their mindsets and understand they also have a role to play in promoting the economy at home,” said one political analyst.
A survey carried out by The Patriot revealed that locally produced goods such as cooking oil, rice, flour soap, toothpaste and washing powder were selling far less than the imported groceries.
Locally produced 2 litres of cooking is going for US$3,20 compared to an imported same quantity selling for US$3,65 while the cheapest 2 kg of rice was selling for US$1,20 compared to US$1,45 being offered for imported rice.
One lady while picking a box of imported cooking oil in a local wholesaler said the hardships faced by the people during hyperinflation had caused a culture of dependence on imports.
“The environment is now different from the hyper-inflationary period in terms of the availability of local products, but there is still a long way for people to regain trust in these products,” she said.
“People still ‘feel cheated’ to the extent that a person will go hoard 10 crates of eggs in South Africa so as to save a dollar or two. Considering the travelling cost and risk of travel, surely it reflects something.”
Some echoed the issue of variety.
Nonetheless whatever the reasons Zimbabwe have for importing trinkets, the fact that consumptive products presently account for at least 70 percent of the country’s import bill is as Minister Chinamasa puts it, crazy.
What is lacking on the part of Government is the necessary control of goods that are coming in.
Authorities should plug the country’s porous borders to curtail smuggling, which presents unfair competition.
It has been argued that Government should immediately ban import of all groceries.
On the other hand people need to be educated on the effects of importing; on themselves and on the economy.
It might take long to work but we will get there eventually, to buy Zimbabwean.