By Staff Reporter
Confederation of Zimbabwe Retailers (CZR) has called for the urgent intervention of President Emmerson Mnangagwa on the closure of formal retailers and wholesalers, citing turbulent economic conditions that have left the sector on its knees.
This follows continued closure of formal retail and wholesale businesses, with those remaining evidently struggling to stock their shelves.
In a recent press statement, CZR president Denford Mutashu called on the Presidium as well as government to rescue the formal retail sector which is suffering from a number of operational and policy challnges.
“CZR calls for urgent intervention from His Excellency, President Dr. Emmerson Mnangagwa to rescue what remains of the formalized retail and wholesale sector.
“(We) appeal to the Presidium to prioritize interventions aimed at saving jobs and mitigating the ongoing wave of shop closures and retrenchments,” reads part of the statement.
The body bemoaned the dual currency system, which they said had become a major reason why most formal retailers were struggling to remain afloat, hence had allowed the informal sector to dominate the market.
“The fiscal, monetary, regulatory and statutory frameworks have remained unforgiving to formal retail and wholesale operators. These challenges have created an uneven playing field, allowing the informal sector to dominate with little intervention to ensure equity.
“One of the most pressing challenges is the dual currency system which disproportionately affects formal retailers and wholesalers. Formal retailers are compelled to accept the ZiG in a predominantly dollarized supply chain,” Mutashu said in the statement.
Mutashu appealed to government to intervene through addressing dual currency challenges as well as formalising the informal sector and reducing the regulatory burden.
“CZR appeals to government to fast track efforts to formalise the informal sector, ensuring equitable competition and tax compliance across all players. Streamlining and rationalizing the current licensing and compliance requirements will alleviate the pressure on formal businesses.
“Immediate steps are needed to cushion formal businesses against high operating costs including the provision of affordable financing options and addressing the dual currency challenges,” said Mutashu.
OK Zimbabwe recently issued a press statement assuring its customers that operations were going to continue following a series of exposes by TellZim News of empty shelves and tills in their branches across the country.
Consumers however are worried as more and more OK branches are still being pictured with empty fridges, tills and shelves.
Several outlets have closed under the N.Richards Group while Spar Zimbabwe has also closed its Queensdale branch.
