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VP Emmerson Mnangagwa

Leonard Ncube in Victoria Falls
The Government says it acknowledges with honour the contribution of 100 local brands for championing the “buy local” initiative in line with the quest to promote local consumption.

About 55 businesses and individuals were awarded certificates of honour by Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa at a dinner here on Thursday. The VP was the guest of honour at the three-day 7th Buy Local Summit and Investment Forum in Victoria Falls.

The top 100 local brands awards were organised through the Buy Zimbabwe initiative to promote local content, a new drive meant to buttress the Statutory Instrument 64 of 2016 and encourage citizens to buy locally produced goods and services.

Those honoured have kept at least 30 percent local content in selected products and have demonstrated procurement from local manufacturers and service providers.

The ‘top brands’ also offered significant support towards the local economic growth through fiscus contributions, employment creation, infrastructural development and relevant value chain linkages while also maintaining a proven market resilience and a superior brand position.

VP Mnangagwa, who condemned the notion of preferring foreign goods to locally made products by citizens, commended the winners as torchbearers of domestic economic policy.

“I want to commend these leading corporate and product brands that have mainstreamed high levels of local content. As Government we appreciate these brands as torch bearers in demonstrating the practicality of local content framework as an industrialisation tool,” he said.

Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI) president, Mr Sifelani Jabangwe, said such corporate and product brands have the potential to turnaround the economy.

The corporate brands, listed in alphabetical order include: Bakers Inn, BAT Zimbabwe, Bata Zimbabwe, BETA Holdings, Blue Ribbon Foods, Cairns Foods, Capri, CBZ Bank, Colcom, Dairibord Zimbabwe, Datlabs, Delta Corporation and Dendairy. Others are: Econet Wireless, FBC Bank, Graniteside Chemicals, Irvines Zimbabwe, KDV Bedding, Lafarge Cement, Lake Harvest, Lesaffre Zimbabwe, Liquid Telecom and Lobels Bread.

Metallon Gold, Metro Peech & Browne, Mimosa Mining Company, N Richards Group, National Foods, Nestle Zimbabwe, Netone, Nyaradzo Group, Ok Zimbabwe, POSB, Powertel, PPC Cement, Probrands, Proton Bakers and Pure Oil Industries.

Schweppes Holdings, Seedco, Spar Zimbabwe, Steward Bank, Surface Wilmar, Tanganda Tea Company, Telecel, Telone, TM Pick n Pay, Tongaat Hullett, Tregers, United Refineries, Windmill, ZB Bank, ZFC Limited, Zimplats and Zol Zimbabwe complete the list of corporate brands.

Product brands include Anchor Yeast, Bonaqua, Buddie, Buttercup Margarine, Camphorcare, Cascade, Chibataura, Chibuku Super, Chompkins, Cremora, Dairibord Udiwo, Dairibord Chimombe, Danmeats, Dendairy Maasi and Dendairy UHT.

There is also Ecocash, Farai Sanitary Products, Gloria Flour, Hullets Sugar, Kango, Killem, Kingsgate, Lafarge Portland Cement, Lion Lager, Lyons Maid, Mazoe Orange, Minute Maid, Nestle Cerelac, Nestle Cerevita, Nestle Everyday, Ngwerewere, Olivine Cooking Oil and One Fusion.

Pearlenta, Probrands Relix Mix, Pure Drop Cooking Oil, Rabroy, Red Seal Roller Meal, Roil Cooking Oil, Royco Usavi Mix, Shumba Maheu, Silo Roller Meal, Sun Jam, Telecash, Willards Cereal complete the list. — @ncubeleon