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Vice President Dr Constantino Chiwenga has said the continued imposition of illegal sanctions will not stop Zimbabwe’s economic transformation and we totally agree.

The nation cannot continue mourning about sanctions but should instead work on robust strategies to grow the economy while countering the impact of the illegal sanctions.

The Second Republic has gone out of its way to engage foes and friends internationally and for reasons best known to themselves, some countries have chosen to maintain the illegal sanctions.

What VP Chiwenga is saying is that these illegal sanctions should not be allowed to derail our vision to attain an upper middle-income economy by 2030.

VP Chiwenga who was speaking at the launch of the Zimbabwe Leather Sector Strategy (2021-2030) in Bulawayo on Friday, said the nation should build robust internal capacities to create wealth and expand job opportunities for its citizens.

He said the disruptive impact of the sanctions could be reversed through revival of domestic value chains, cutting on imports and expanding prospects for inclusive growth.

“Sanctions should be behind us now as we focus on growing our economy taking advantage of our abundant natural resources which are an envy of many,” said VP Chiwenga.

Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) should lead the industrialisation of the country given the sector’s potential to rapidly expand and create new jobs.

Government has said closer co-ordination and synergies are therefore essential between MSMEs sector and various Government departments and local authorities. Instead of crying about sanctions, industry has been urged to develop modern and world class quality products and services which meet the needs of citizens.

Addressing members of the sector last year, President Mnangagwa urged them to establish partnerships and networks with business chambers from beyond the country’s borders. He challenged the MSMEs to also develop synergies with universities in order to tap into the ongoing innovations and inventions which can propel resilience and growth of enterprises.

The universities have already responded positively to calls by the Government to churn out relevant graduates whose innovations and inventions can impact on the growth of MSMEs.

Last year President Mnangagwa commissioned many industrial projects at state universities which are products of the Government’s programme of establishing innovation hubs and industrial parks at state universities and colleges.

It is these innovation hubs and industrial parks that MSMEs should fully utilise to boost production and improve the quality of their products to counter sanctions.

The strong and vibrant innovation ecosystems being spearheaded by these institutions of higher learning should assist the small enterprises to keep abreast with emerging new skills and technologies so that their products and services remain competitive internationally.

We want at this juncture to implore industry not to be distracted by the illegal sanctions meant to frustrate our economy but as VP Chiwenga said, we should instead put shoulder to the wheel as we work to grow our economy.