“There are no two ways about that, devolution is going to be a success, and it will benefit the people of Masvingo.”
For Mr Benjamin Mazarire, a local mine owner in Masvingo, devolution of power is the paragon of good governance, and can be qualified as the ne plus ultra of democracy.
The Masvingo mining magnate believes that devolution will boost business, as well as bring development to Masvingo.
Devolution, according to Mazarire, is a conduit that will provide local mining players with an opportunity to tunnel their resources to the upgrading of the province without exogenous competition.
In 2013, Zimbabwe adopted a new constitution that provides the framework for devolution of government powers and responsibilities to the country’s various Provinces. The process of devolution of power will ensure the egalitarian allocation and use of State resources, such as natural and human resources.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa is on record saying that he is committed to delivering devolution to the people during his tenure. This will result in the establishment of the Provincial tier type of government.
There is affinity within the business community, which has welcomed devolution, adding that it will promote locally driven development, improve public services delivery, and promoting national integration.
In an interview with ZiMining after a tour of Unity Quarries and Summerton Gold mine in Masvingo, Hillthru Director, Mazarire, said he was optimistic that devolution will bring dividends to local players.
The reigning businessperson of the year for Masvingo province, said devolution will provide them with a centralized platform to contribute to the Province’s growth, than to rely on third party people based in other parts of the country.
Mazarire, who owns Unity Quarries and Summerton 18 Gold Mine in Masvingo, among his vast business empire, urged fellow business people in the Province to embrace devolution, and be ready to positively contribute to its success by value adding
“Devolution is a welcome move by our government that conforms to our constitution. We are in sync with our President, His Excellency, Cde E. D. Mnangagwa on the issue of devolution,” said an optimistic Mazarire.
However, Mazarire is cognisant of the fact that it will not be a stroll in the park for devolution to have meaningful contribution to the province of Masvingo, as it requires a collective effort from all stakeholders in the province.
“This is an opportunity being presented to us (the Masvingo business community) and a challenge to perform while positively contributing to its (devolution) success because it offers us with many business opportunities to grow our province,” he said.
Masvingo is endowed with a cornucopia of mineral resources such as gold, lithium, chrome and even asbestos, that Mazarire said they will now be easy to manage and account for, as they contribute to the development of the province.
“Our area (Masvingo) is blessed with many natural resources that can sustain the Provincial economy. So this calls for the (Masvingo) business community to put resources together to support devolution,” he said.
Mazarire, who is a liberation war veteran, said quarry miners in Masvingo are likely to benefit from the Beitbridge/ Harare highway rehabilitation project.
“We are happy that government has given the nod to local suppliers to help in the rehabilitation of the Beitbridge / Harare road. At Unity Quarries, we produce the best quarry stones that are good for our roads.
“We are confident that we will be able to supply the project with enough quarry. The project must get resource supply from nearby suppliers,” he said.
Turning to gold mining, the question is: Is it possible for the mining sector to achieve a targeted US$12 billion industry by 2023?
Mazarire, who also runs Summerton 18 Gold Mine that is equipped with state of the art equipment, retorts that the US$12 billion target set by President Mnangagwa is attainable if the country addresses the crippling power outages, that last as long as eighteen hours a day.
“The target can be achieved even earlier because our country is blessed with a lot of minerals. Now, effort must be put on exploration, mining and beneficiation of those minerals.
“With adequate power supply, I’m sure we can reach the target much earlier. We are aware that the government is working round the clock to address the energy challenges,” he said.
