By Talkmore Gandiwa and Pride Mzarabani
The Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI) is intensifying efforts to push the country’s industrial players toward sustainable business practices, stressing that sustainability is no longer a secondary issue but a strategic necessity for survival in a rapidly changing global economy.
At CZI Annual pre business conference, CZI CEO Sekai Kuvarika said the organisation has prioritised initiatives aimed at promoting energy efficiency, responsible water management, climate change adaptation, and renewable energy adoption across the business community.
Kuvarika noted that the thrust is not merely to tick compliance boxes but to future-proof businesses, embed resilience, and enhance competitiveness.
“One of the real and present challenges for businesses in Zimbabwe is energy,” Kuvarika said. “We are encouraging energy efficiency so that we are more efficient with the energy that is available, and we reduce energy intensity per unit of production in our businesses.”
She revealed that companies are already making progress in this regard, citing one enterprise that has successfully achieved ISO 50001 certification after implementing comprehensive energy efficiency measures. “That example demonstrates that it is possible to embed international best practices in our industries,” she added.
Energy efficiency efforts are also being complemented by a growing investment in renewable energy solutions. “We have quite a few of our companies that have gone into solar for their own usage. But beyond that, there is expansion in companies that are providing solar energy for commercial and industrial use,” Kuvarika said.
CZI is also encouraging the exploration of other solar-dependent technologies as alternatives to conventional power, which remains erratic and costly. According to Kuvarika, forums and dialogues create platforms to advance the business case for renewables, while ensuring enterprises position themselves for a carbon-constrained future.
Another priority area is water demand management. “Water demand management is one of the big issues that we are trying to make sure companies are more efficient in,” Kuvarika stressed.
This focus is particularly crucial for agro-based industries, which face heightened exposure to droughts and extreme weather events linked to climate change. “What we are trying to do is to ensure that businesses actively and intentionally map their exposure to climate change, but also anticipate their impact on the environment that may accelerate climate change, so that this can be mitigated,” she said.
CZI is building capacity among its members to measure and account for greenhouse gas emissions. Companies are being trained to calculate their carbon footprints, aligning with Zimbabwe’s climate policies and the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) that set out the country’s emission reduction commitments.
While progress is being made, Kuvarika admitted that adoption of sustainability remains uneven. “We have seen from our surveys that there is a lot of focus on reporting and compliance, but not necessarily on embedding sustainability into business strategy,” she said.
She noted that sustainability reporting often satisfies regulatory requirements or international customer expectations, but true resilience will only come if companies integrate sustainability into their long-term vision. “If you are responsible for sustainability and you have to sell it to your CEO from a reporting perspective, you are not going to get the same support you would get if you were selling it from a business strategy and resilience perspective,” she said.
Embedding sustainability in core strategy, she argued, would secure stronger leadership buy-in and ensure that companies future-proof themselves against risks that threaten their existence.
Another factor slowing adoption is the mismatch between the pace of policy development, enterprise adaptation, and the evolution of global financial markets. Kuvarika described this as an “asymmetry in transition.”
“Capital markets have transitioned, and funds for climate-related financing have become available. But maybe we are not moving at the same pace in terms of complying with those regulations,” Kuvarika said.
Furthermore, Kuvarika emphasised that sustainability offers businesses what she called a “capital licence.” Companies that align with climate finance requirements can unlock new sources of funding, yet many Zimbabwean enterprises are still lagging behind in positioning themselves to access these opportunities.
CZI’s strategy is therefore twofold: to accelerate awareness and capacity building within industries, while pushing for greater alignment between business practices and policy frameworks. Kuvarika believes that businesses must not wait passively for regulations but should proactively act on sustainability to remain viable and competitive.
“We probably need to raise the momentum on the business side so that we are not waiting to comply with what comes out of the policies, but we also proactively begin to take action,” she said.
Looking ahead, CZI plans to intensify engagement with both large corporates and SMEs, ensuring that sustainability is not perceived as a burden but as a driver of competitiveness, resilience, and access to new markets.
“The way we approach sustainability is not just about reporting, but really about long-term business resilience,” said Kuvarika. “Sustainability will determine whether our businesses actually exist in the future. That is why it is imperative for Zimbabwean companies to act now.”
