Zimpapers Logo

The world is in recession. The Covid-19 threat has led to shutdowns across the globe which have seen companies going for weeks or months without any production.

Workers have been put on leave and for many, the threat of losing their jobs becomes more and more real with every passing day.

Covid-19 could lead to the permanent closure of many companies. The virus’ impact on world economies has been rapid and devastating.

Zimbabwe is no exception, but Government has moved in to avert total disaster. As we reported yesterday, Government will soon unveil a stimulus package to support companies that have been badly affected by the Covid-19 lockdown as part of measures to avert mass job losses and save livelihoods.

Finance and Economic Development Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube announced a package that will provide the much-needed economic relief to companies and industries reeling under the effects of the global pandemic.

“What you will see during this Covid-19 response generally is a stronger shift towards supporting our social action programmes and that is very critical. Another leg of saving livelihoods is to support companies so that we can retain jobs as we don’t want our people to lose jobs,” said Prof Ncube.

“We want to create more jobs, which is precisely why we want to support companies to retain, expand and access working capital. You will see us in the next few weeks announcing the recovery package to deal with those issues and watch this space for that.”

Workers in various sectors of the economy, particularly the hospitality and tourism industry, are bearing the brunt of Covid-19, and there are growing fears of job losses as the global economy continues to plummet.

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) estimates that globally over 25 million jobs will be lost due to the coronavirus. This could be worse in countries like Zimbabwe where the bulk of jobs are in the informal industry.

The move by Government is not only praiseworthy, but in line with global trends. Massive interventions and packages are the order of the day in all four corners of the globe.

In America, President Donald Trump last month signed into law a rescue package that included US$349 billion in low-interest loans for small businesses.

According to The New York Times, the Paycheck Protection Programme is supposed to help protect small companies — generally those with fewer than 500 employees — from collapse.

In South Africa, Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan on Saturday met with the South African Airways (SAA) unions’ representatives and a deal was reached to save jobs at the courier that had previously been reported as facing liquidation.

City Press reported that the meeting agreed on “a moratorium on retrenchments for the next seven days”.

To save economies and jobs, governments are acting fast. They are making hay while the sun is still shining.

It could be a long wait until science defeats Covid-19. While the war will definitely be won, there are no guarantees on the timelines.

President Mnangagwa’s Government has done the responsible thing. Funds may not be enough, but it is better to salvage what can be salvaged.

We urge continued co-operation between Government and industry. Saving jobs and the economy will benefit all Zimbabweans and generations to come.