By Pride Mzarabani
HARARE – President Emmerson Mnangagwa has announced that Zimbabwe will launch a National Productivity Institute aimed at enhancing efficiency, innovation, and competitiveness across key industries, as part of new legislative measures to be tabled during the Third Session of the Tenth Parliament.
Delivering the State of the Nation Address (SONA) and officially opening the Third Session, President Mnangagwa said the proposed National Productivity Institute Bill seeks to create the Zimbabwe Productivity Institute, which will spearhead initiatives to drive increased productivity across all sectors of the economy.
“With regard to the industry and commerce sub-sectors, the National Productivity Institute Bill seeks to create the Zimbabwe productivity institute, to drive increased productivity across all our industries,” He said.
Once operational, the Institute is expected to provide policy guidance, and facilitate capacity-building programmes for both public and private enterprises. The intervention is anticipated to help industries streamline operations, reduce production costs, and strengthen their position in regional and global markets, in line with government’s broader objectives of industrial transformation and economic modernization.
However, businesses continue to operate within a complex regulatory environment characterized by inconsistencies, high tax burdens, bureaucratic bottlenecks, and restrictive policy frameworks that constrain growth and competitiveness. The establishment of the Institute is therefore viewed as a strategic move to address these structural inefficiencies and foster a more conducive environment for sustainable industrial growth.
To address some of these concerns the President noted that government has reviewed licences, permits, levies and fees as well as the multiple regulatory requirements across all sectors to enhance the country’s ease of doing business, reduction of costs and the competitiveness of the local industry. “The respective Statutory Instruments and statutes will be accordingly amended.”
“The manufacturing sector registered a 15.3% contribution to GDP. The success is attributable to significant investments in the steel, cement, dairy, cotton-to-clothing, and pharmaceutical value chains, among others,” said Mnangagwa.
According to data from the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT), the country’s industrial sectors remain weighed down by persistent challenges, including electricity shortages, limited access to affordable finance, and a volatile economic climate. Improving productivity and operational efficiency will be central to revitalizing domestic manufacturing and strengthening Zimbabwe’s export capacity.
However, the President added that Zimbabwe Industrial Reconstruction and Growth Plan, rural industrialisation, and the Community Economic Empowerment Trusts will result in increased production, leveraging on the country’s resource endowments. “I urge our people to take advantage of the new policy approved by Cabinet on Community Economic Empowerment Trusts and Reserved Sectors.”
