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NATIONAL ASSEMBLY HANSARD 18 SEPTEMBER 2024 VOL 50 NO 84

PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE

Wednesday, 18^th September, 2024

The National Assembly met at a Quarter-past Two o’clock p.m.

PRAYERS

(THE ACTING SPEAKER in the Chair)

ANNOUNCEMENTS BY THE ACTING SPEAKER

ANNUAL CHARITY GOLF TOURNAMENT

         THE ACTING SPEAKER (HON. MACHINGURA):  I have to remind the House that the Parliament of Zimbabwe will be hosting its Annual Charity Golf Tournament on Friday, 27^th September, 2024 at the Police Golf Club.  The proceeds of the event will be donated to Mazowe Old People’s Home.  Hon. Members are urged to support the event by sponsoring teams or taking up the various sponsorship packages available. 

Those interested in participating in the event of taking up sponsorship packages should contact the Director, Public Relations, Mr. F. Makubaza on 0712 524 172 or Mr. N. Nyathi, Public Relations Officer on 0775 331 987. 

APOLOGIES RECEIVED FROM MINISTERS

THE ACTING SPEAKER: I thank our Chief Whips for clearly presenting their lists. I noted that they have done an excellent job since yesterday.

         Let me read out the list of Ministers who have tendered in their apologies for today’s sitting: - Hon. K. Coventry, Minister of Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture; Hon. J. Mhlanga, Deputy Minister of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development; Hon. D. Garwe, Minister of  Local Government and Public Works; Hon. F. Shava, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and International Trade; Hon. O. Mazungunye, Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs; Hon. F. Mhona, Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development; Hon. J. Sacco, Deputy Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development; Hon. E. Moyo, Minister of Energy and Power Development; Hon. M. Ncube, Deputy Minister of  National Housing and Social Amenities; Hon. Dr. Mombeshora, Minister of  Health and Child Care; and Hon. R. Modi, Deputy Minister of  Industry and Commerce.

         The list that I have been given for Ministers who are in the House are: - Hon. Z. Soda, Minister of National Housing and Social Amenities; Hon. Z. Ziyambi, Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs and also Leader of Government Business in the House; Hon. Sanyatwe, Deputy Minister of Home Affairs; Hon. Mayihlome, Deputy Minister of Defence, Hon. S. Sibanda, Deputy Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science and Technology Development; Hon. J. Moyo, Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare; Hon. Kazembe, Minister of Home Affairs; Hon. N. M. Ndlovu, Minister of Industry, Hon. Kambura, Deputy Minister of Mines; Hon. E. Jesaya, Deputy Minister of Sports, Recreation Arts and Culture.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE

         *HON.  CHOKURURAMA: Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and good afternoon.  My question is directed to the Ministry that is responsible for food distribution in this country.  I am very grateful that the figures are increasing.  However, what is the Government doing to ensure that everyone gets sufficient food?  I thank you.

         *THE MINISTER OF PUBLIC SERVICE AND SOCIAL WELFARE (HON. J. MOYO): Thank you, Mr. Speaker.  I would like to thank Hon. Chokururama for the question.  At the beginning of this year when the Government realised that the rains were poor, His Excellency, the President said everyone who is starving must be listed under their village heads because they are the ones who know the particular households that do not have food. 

         In April, the registration went on, we told the village heads not to leave out anyone who did not have food from the list.  Up to date, His, Excellency the President is saying everyone, be it in the village or districts who is starving, must be included on that list.  That is why we also announced in this House that we gave food to around 6,1 million people after receiving lists from village heads, but now that figure has increased. 

We are now going to give more than 6,2 million people because some village heads later realised that they had left out some people and right now the figures have increased.  We are going to give them, but we would like to give a warning that at the beginning, we had estimated that we were going to distribute food to 9 million people after the El Nino phenomenon.  The President signed that giving a go-ahead to the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Resettlement after asking him whether we have the requisite grain and the Minister explained accordingly.  The village heads then submitted the names, which means some of the people might have been left out.

 It is the Government’s job, it is the duty of the village heads, Members of Parliament and any Government official as well as chiefs, to ensure that anyone who is left out but deserves to receive food must be included.  If any members of the society might have been left out, we want them to be included on the lists.

         HON. DR. MUTODI:   On a supplementary Hon. Minister.  Is it possible to generate a database that shows the number or the names of those who are currently benefiting and those who are in need, who also need to be added to the list which is currently benefiting?  This makes it easy to ensure that there is a real figure or number of people who are actually benefiting and that there is no uncertainty to what number is actually benefiting.  Thank you.

         THE MINISTER OF PUBLIC SERVICE, LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE (HON. J. MOYO):  Thank you Hon. Speaker.  I want to thank the Hon. Member.  We rely on two things.  Firstly, we know the number of people in each ward, that is the database that we have which comes from census and we keep that but the data that we require is generated by those who write the beneficiaries at village level.  Of course, we compare to say if the ward has written so many people, what percentages of the total number of number of people in the wards is in their data.

If we had to keep the database at national level, it will be voluminous but we keep the database that has been authenticated by census in terms of the number of people per ward. We have said it is open-ended in terms of those who are needing to be given food and they are written at the village level and that is where the database is.  Any Member of Parliament can examine that database at the village level or at the district level, that is where those are kept.  I am sure that is why we also make sure that we employ graduates in each district part of the country to make sure that the database is properly written.  Yes, at the village level, the people select who they think are in need but we provide with graduates who write that data that is coming from village heads.  So, the data is there.  I thank you.

         HON. HAMAUSWA:  Point of order!

         THE ACTING SPEAKER:  What procedure has been breached in the House which you are addressing with your point of order?

         HON. HAMAUSWA:   According to Standing Order Number 65...

         THE ACTING SPEAKER:  Yes, what rule of procedure has been broken?

         HON. HAMAUSWA: The question that was asked was not answered properly because the Hon. Member wants to know the number of people who are being fed.  We are the parliamentarians who approved the budget and the Minister cannot say he does not know the actual figure being fed.  Then, if we do not have a consolidated number but we actually have a voter’s roll with six million people, so how can we fail to know the people who are being fed?  That is what we want to know for the purposes of transparency and accountability.

         THE ACTING SPEAKER:  If Hon. Mutodi asked a question to the Minister, the Minister gave his response and he did not rise for the second time to indicate to the Speaker that his question has not been answered; for you to then stand up on his behalf with the distance that is between the two of you, I do not understand how you have communicated. 

         *HON. S. TSHUMA:  I would like to thank the Hon. Minister for the great job that he is doing, especially receiving the additional names for those who are to receive grain. Minister, I want to find out what you are doing to ensure that the maize gets to the people quickly. We have some districts that do not have GMB depots with maize, so they are receiving from other provinces. The maize is first of all offloaded at one GMB depot of one province instead of going straight to where it is supposed to go, that is the wards. Why do we not ensure that the grain is transported from wherever directly to the wards?

         *THE ACTING SPEAKER: In future Hon. Tshuma, do not mix languages but stick to one language. However, I forgive you because the question is important.

         *HON. J. MOYO: Indeed, there are delays in getting to where people stay because it is not about maize only. We also have sorghum, wheat and millet which we are giving to people. Right now, wheat is only found in the northern provinces, especially Mashonaland West as well as Mashonaland East, Manicaland and Midlands, though in Manicaland and Midlands, it will be low. So, that is where we are going to be transporting the grain from.

We agreed that for the grain to be distributed, if we are to say trucks come from Lions Den to Hwange, there maybe delays. The grain is being transported by rail and this started in May. They will be transporting the grain to the GMB depots that are accessible from Lions Den, for example Kwekwe and sometimes they go as far as Gweru and Mvuma. When there was grain in Bulawayo, they would start in Bulawayo and go all the way to Matebeleland North, Dete, Gwayi River, Sawmills as well as Hwange. There was maize there but here in Harare, they would take from Bindura via Concession and Glendale. We wanted them to go as far as Shamva but the rail network was no longer accessible.

For Rusape, we would take it to urban as well as Mutare and some would be getting the grain from those central depots up to the rural areas. Some of the grain would be transported from Bulawayo to Zvishavane all the way to Rutenga using BBR. We would transport the maize from Bulawayo to Beitbridge and drop some consignments in Esigodini, Mbalabala and Gwanda using the train to transport the grain. From there, the grain would be transported to depots which are 88 in total in this country.  So, they were transporting it from GMB to the depots but we agreed with GMB that if you are taking from Chipinge to Buhera, that will not help us.  There will be no point in going to Murambinda after passing Birchenough Bridge.  So, you have to distribute in Murambinda but if you are going to distribute further places after Murambinda, then you can drop it at Murambinda. 

For example, Gokwe South or Gokwe North, when the depots are from Kwekwe and the destination will be Gokwe South or Gokwe Centre, it will not be good to pass through Bomba all the way to Gokwe Centre.  First of all, they have to drop it on the way, that is Gokwe North then get from Sanyati and go all the way to Copper Queen but where it comes from Kabuyuni, they get it from Gokwe Centre.

         The reason is we are saying the GMB should be going back again to collect from places like Sanyati.  So, what he is talking about is exactly the implementing method we are using and that will also apply to the feeding plan.  Sometimes, we distribute mealie-meal using the train or where there are no locomotives, we use trucks.  So, there will be a relationship between GMB railways and the Social Welfare.  We have an agreement and that is the map that we agreed.  That is also the reason why we were able to distribute 127 000 metric tonnes as we started.  If we were going to use trucks only without using trains, then we would need a lot of such loads.  So, we use the intermodal transportation system.  This is what we are using.  I thank you.

         *THE ACTING SPEAKER:  Thank you Hon. Minister.  I think the problem with the Hon. Member, he is saying all the explanation that you gave, is there no method that can be used to ensure that the distribution is expedited?

         *HON. J. MOYO: What I was explaining is the way that we find to be the most efficient.  This is our last resort and our total effort.  Think about mealie-meal that is supposed to be distributed to schools.  We tried all methods.  Some other time, we were delayed by the millers themselves. Sometimes, it is because of the delay in disbursement of funds from Ministry of Finance.  Sometimes, the Ministry of Social Welfare might have the funds but the depots will not be having anything.  So, there are a lot of stakeholders; Social Welfare, Ministry of Finance, GMB and NRZ.  Each and every day by eight o’clock a.m, they look into that.  They evaluate how we would have worked.  The Finance will also be asked to pay to GMB as well as Social Welfare because Social Welfare pays the railways and transporters as well. So, there are a lot of stakeholders involved. Like I am saying, we have tried so much to expedite and this is what we are able to do.

         HON. P. DUBE:  My supplementary to the Minister, through you Hon. Speaker, is the issue of data collection in urban areas.  For your information, the issue of data collection in urban areas is in shambles for the drought relief programme.  Hon. Minister, would you confirm to this House whether the issue of data collection is done through the ZIMLAC, which is Zimbabwe Livelihoods Assessment Committee or it is done through the Social Welfare officers who are in the various wards?  If it is done through the ZIMLAC, do they actually have offices in wards or in districts in comparison to the Social Welfare which has got offices at district and ward level?  Thank you. 

         THE ACTING SPEAKER:  Which figures are these Hon. Member, I mean the data that you are talking about?

         HON. P. DUBE:  I am talking about the data collection in terms of the beneficiaries or people that are being written for the purpose of benefiting in the Drought Relief Scheme.

         HON. J. MOYO:  There is a difference, ZIMLAC works under the Food and Nutrition Council.  Their job is to analyse the depth of poverty and the need in each area.  In this case, what they did in the urban area, and ZIMLAC report as a public document, is to give figures of what they assessed as needing assistance.  They have assessed this.  They have scientific ways which they have done.  They have worked with bi-laterals, international organisations, UN and inter-ministerial, and the whole of society approach in coming up with those figures.  So, they indicate that so and so, we think those who need food are 30% of the population. 

Again, we have the figure of the population in each district and ward.  When they say 40% need food in this ward, we translate that 40% into numbers and we then say to that ward, to those who are selecting, it is not ZIMLAC.  ZIMLAC has finished its work.  We now go to the supervision done by Government and supported by Councillors in the urban areas and these Children Community Workers (CCW).  They know the areas and wards and they are the ones who then call for meetings and say if it is only 30% who need food, tell us the 30%.  It is an arduous job.  People argue and when they have finalised, that is why sometimes it takes long.  When they have got their 30%, these are now written by our graduates and that is the data in terms of names that I am saying is held in the wards and maybe at district level.  So, the names come from the people gathered in each ward in order to fulfil, say 30%...

         HON. SAGANDIRA: On a point of order Hon. Speaker.

         THE ACTING SPEAKER: Which rule of procedure has been breached?  It is not admissible, please sit down Hon. Member.  Hon. Minister!

         HON. J. MOYO:  Thank you Mr. Speaker for protecting me to go ahead.  I think I have tried to analyse for Hon. Dube that in fact ZIMLAC does not do data selection. It gives us perimeters to show us depth of poverty, but the selection is done in each ward.  I thank you Mr. Speaker. 

         THE ACTING SPEAKER:   I need to inform the House that we have got additional Ministers in here.  We have Hon. O. C. Z. Muchinguri, the Minister of Defence; Hon. Mavhunga, Minister of Veterans of the Liberation Struggle Affairs; Hon. Mupamhanga – Deputy Minister of Youth Empowerment and Vocational Training and Hon. Marupi, the Deputy Minister of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services. - [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] - 

         ^*HON. KANUPULA:  Thank you Mr. Speaker and good afternoon. I would like to applaud the programme initiated by His Excellency the President, of distributing title deeds to urban property owners. 

         My question is directed to the Minister of National Housing and Social Amenities.  What is the Government’s plan to ensure that people who were settled through Housing Corporatives have access to service development such as roads and sewer?  What is the current status of those developments? I thank you.

         ^*THE MINISTER OF NATIONAL HOUSING AND SOCIAL AMENITIES (HON. SODA):  Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I would like to thank Hon. Kanupula for that question.  The question that he posed is about regularisation or sanitisation which means people who settled in unserviced areas where there are no roads, no sewer lines and no water are the ones being looked at.

         Currently, there is a task force involving the Ministry of National Housing and Social Amenities, the Ministry of Local Government and Public Works, the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Resettlement, the Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services as well as the Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, who are the ones who are supposed to be giving the title deeds that he earlier on alluded to. 

We are also working with the private sector coming through Kwangu Trust, which is responsible for mobilisation of resources, especially funds that will be used for the construction of roads and the other service infrastructure.  So, the Kwangu Trust – I believe in Epworth where the programme was launched, they now have a site office whereby people who want to get title deeds go there and submit their applications. The applications require the local authorities or local councils to issue offer letters.  Although a person may have settled through a cooperative, they are supposed to be acknowledged that indeed they are the owners of that land. 

         The question was, how far is the progress?  In short, the response is, it is at an advanced stage.  Right now, they have identified sites for pilot projects in Epworth, Chitungwiza, Caledonia, Southlea Park and Cowdry Park. 

Preparations are at an advanced stage because Kwangu who are responsible for resource mobilisation, are on the ground and will ensure that all the services required for settlements such as roads are complied with.  The title deeds will then be issued because some people settled where there are supposed to be roads or schools.  So, this will be done through regularisation and sanitisation.

         *HON. KANUPULA:  Thank you Mr. Speaker.  My supplementary question is, what about the housing cooperatives that have everything including permits and certified maps but want to seek developers to start work on the roads as they wait for programmes to ensure that the title deeds are distributed?  What measures can such housing cooperatives take to ensure that work begins whilst they wait for Government’s progress?  The problem is land barons are a menace everywhere.  I thank you.

         *HON. SODA: Thank you Hon. Speaker, I want to thank the Hon. Member for his question.  As I alluded to, we are not doing this as a single ministry.  So, some questions require the involvement of other ministries.  What he mentioned about cooperatives, how they are registered, how they engage developers, this question is for Ministry of Local Government.  They are the responsible ministry to answer that.  I thank you Hon. Speaker.

         *THE ACTING SPEAKER: Sorry Minister, you said it is for which ministry?

         HON. SODA:  Local Government.

         *THE ACTING SPEAKER: Hon. Member, can you put the question in writing, this will help so that the Minister can seek clarification from the relevant ministry so that you get a satisfying answer.

         HON. MUTSEYAMI: Thank you Hon. Speaker.  My supplementary question to the attention of the Hon. Minister basically is to do with the second part of the question that the Hon. Member has asked.  We have land developers who had some agreements then with the Local Government Ministry but so much to do with Housing and Social Amenities.  These land developers, some of them have since ceased to exist and some of the land developers have passed on but they left roads not being done, the sewerage and all those other things. 

         What plans does Government have so that all those areas can be looked at?

         THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. Z. ZIYAMBI): Thank you Hon. Speaker, what His Excellency mandated us to do is to identify such settlements that have not been completed.  The whole idea of giving a title deed is to unlock value so that we can use that title deed to have an infrastructure development bond being registered and we use that bond to do infrastructure development. So, the whole idea is to ensure that in areas that are underdeveloped, we start by identifying the beneficiaries and we say these are the beneficiaries, we have the lay out plans and we say like that the Hon. Minister said, you are not supposed to be there because there is a school that was earmarked to be there, a road was earmarked to be there.  Once we have identified all those, we make sure that they are moved away.  We then issue title deeds when we have properly identified the beneficiaries.

         The second stage now is to ensure that those beneficiaries with title deeds, their title deeds at infrastructural development; bond is registered so that we unlock value and have infrastructure development.  So, those are some of the settlements that we believe from the programme.

         HON. NGWENYA: My supplementary questions concern those people who are settled in places which the Hon. Minister is referring to as having been earmarked for other things like schools.  Are there any plans for those people to be resettled or given other land?

         HON. Z. ZIYAMBI: Thank you Hon. Speaker, that is the whole purpose to ensure that once we identify those, we look for alternative places.  The whole idea is not to punish people but to regularise and ensure that our settlements are according to the lay out plan.  So, the whole idea is to ensure that all those that are not supposed to be there; alternative places are identified for them to be moved.

         HON. MAHLANGU: My question is directed to the Hon. Minister of Health and Child Care.  Given that elephantiasis is a debilitating disease with long term implications and social consequences, what measures are in place to address the issue of local residence in affected areas who refuse to be vaccinated besides the availability of the vaccine?  I thank you.

         THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF HEALTH AND CHILD CARE (HON. KWIDINI): Thank you Hon. Speaker, I would like to thank the Hon. Member for the question. As she has asked a question that the challenge is being caused by people who are refusing to be vaccinated; as the Ministry, the policy is that we respect the people’s rights. Despite the people’s rights to refuse the policy that has been implemeted by Government in terms of prevention and control of such diseases, we keep on giving awareness and giving more education to the people, the benefits of getting vaccination in order to prevent because such diseases do not have what we call a specific treatment.  The issue is to prevent those diseases. I thank you.

         HON. TOBAIWA: Thank you Hon. Speaker.  My supplementary to the Hon. Minister is how is the Government ensuring that these communities understand the importance of vaccination to prevent the spread and long-term effects of the disease?  I thank you.

         HON. KWIDINI: Thank you Mr. Speaker and I want to thank the Hon. Member for the question. To me it is just the same question as I said earlier on that people are persuaded and sometimes you keep on including other ministries like the Ministry of Home Affairs and other ministries to come in such that we assist each other so that these people understand because the moment they refuse vaccination, there is no way we can say we can prevent it. So, after education as I said earlier on, we do awareness campaigns to make them understand the prognosis of this disease if not addressed through vaccination, it can cause harmful effects to the entire community that has some symptoms and problems identified in that certain community.  I thank you.

         HON. KANGAUSARU: Hon. Speaker this disease is already there and there has been an outbreak …

         An Hon. Member having passed between the Chair and the member speaking.

         THE ACTING SPEAKER: Order Hon. Member, order.

         *HON. KANGAUSARU: My question is that those who go to churches that do now allow them to be vaccinated, what plans are there to encourage them to be vaccinated because the word of God says my people perish because of lack of knowledge?

         *HON. KWIDINI:  Thank you Mr. Speaker.  The same question is now in vernacular but the fact is, we all know that there are some religions that do not want to receive medicines that they can receive in hospitals because they believe in God, but I am saying as Government, if we realise that the problem has become a national threat or a risk, we will then involve other stakeholders.  We will take measures that do not take into regard their belief that they only believe in God and they will not accept the medicines.

         So, if there is anyone who has an additional question, they should put it in writing so that we give details and evidence on the measures that we are taking.  I thank you.

HON. KAPOIKILU:  Thank you Hon. Speaker.  This is a very important question that was asked by the Hon. Member.  Hon. Speaker, elephantiasis is already there.  There has been an outbreak.  It is transmitted by mosquitos that infect the bloodstream with what we call filarial worms that block the lymphatic system.  So, you tend to get blockage of the lymphatic system, you tend to get swollen limbs, arms and scrotum.  This disease is treated by drugs like DEC and Ivermectin.

THE ACTING SPEAKER:  What is you question Hon. Member?

HON. KAPOIKILU:  My question is, do you have these drugs like DEC, Ivermectin and Albendazole to treat this disease now that there has been an outbreak?  Do you have enough drugs to treat this disease because once you have got an outbreak, you have to treat the entire community where the outbreak is to prevent this disease from spreading?  Do you have enough quantities?  Do you have surgical facilities to treat this disease because sometimes you tend to get swelling of the scrotum in men with this disease? – [HON. MEMBERS:  Inaudible interjections.] -

THE ACTING SPEAKER:  Order Hon. Members!  Honourable, thank you for your question but I thought the question was – Minister, do we have drugs to deal with the disease, but you mentioned particular types of drugs in your question.  Can you please make it a written question so that the Minister can reply you on whether he has got DEC and all those other drugs that you mentioned.  Thank you.    

*HON. NYABANI:  My question goes to the Minister of Mines and Mining Development.  What is Government policy in regards to minerals which are being smuggled from this country to other countries?  Thank you.

THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF MINES AND MINING DEVELOPMENT (HON. KAMBAMURA):  The question is too general Hon. Speaker.  I am not quite sure if the Hon. Member has noticed some minerals that are being smuggled so that I can be able to answer.

THE ACTING SPEAKER:  Can you raise your voice a little bit so that I can hear what you are saying.

HON. KAMBAMURA:  Thank you Hon. Speaker Sir.  I would like to thank Hon. Nyabani for the question. The Government does not allow smuggling of minerals from the country.  Every mineral that will be exported has to be licenced through an export permit so that Government benefits from the export receipts, and also other regulatory authorities will need to see the source of the export mineral.  I am not quite sure if the Hon. Member has specific minerals that he has noticed that are being smuggled from the country.  Thank you. 

HON. NYABANI:  Supplementary question.  With regards to minerals, there are some that are being undervalued.  What is the Government policy?

THE ACTING SPEAKER:  Hon. Nyabani, is it a new question or it is a supplementary question?

HON. NYABANI:  Yes, it is a supplementary question.

THE ACTING SPEAKER:  Your first question was on smuggling, is that not so?  Now you are talking about undervaluing.  That is a new question.

HON. NYABANI:  It is all about minerals.  It is not a new question – [HON. MEMBERS:  Inaudible interjections.] -

THE ACTING SPEAKER:  Hon. Members, I am in the Chair.  Respect the Chair.  Hon. Nyabani, I think that is a new question.  What exactly are you trying to say Hon. Nyabani?

*HON. NYABANI:  Let me speak in Shona.  Mr. Speaker Sir, if minerals are exported even if they go through the border, if they undervalue, it is smuggling.

*HON. KAMBAMURA:  Thank you Mr. Speaker.  Thank you Hon. Nyabani for the question with regards to minerals that he thinks are smuggled through undervaluing.   Sometimes they will not be documented.  As Government, we encourage all miners who export that before they do that, they are supposed to write to the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development to get permission to export their minerals.  That permit specifies the time as well as the value of the minerals.

HON. MUROMBEDZI:  On a point of order Hon. Speaker.  We can hardly hear the Minister.

THE ACTING SPEAKER:  Hon. Member, even if you have a good point, when you say point of order, I have to recognise you.  When you stand up and start speaking, you are not asking the Chair for a point of order.

Hon. Minister, can you please raise your voice so that we can hear you.

*HON. KAMBAMURA:  Thank you Mr. Speaker.  Hon. Nyabani asked me on what Government is doing with regards to minerals that may be smuggled through undervaluing.  As a Ministry, we encourage all miners who export that they are supposed to inform the Ministry and seek permits.  They are granted those permits after considering where the minerals are coming from and ensuring that they are paying all the dues to Government as well as ensuring that they are registered under ZIMRA.  The permit stipulates the quantities and the timeframe for that transaction. 

So if someone then exports without those permits, it is as good as stealing from the Government because all the minerals are under the Head of State.  It is as good as stealing from the President.  So, we encourage law enforcement agencies to arrest such people who are caught doing that.  I thank you.

         *HON. MAKUMIRE: The Hon. Minister said the Government has plans to ensure that they put surveillance machines.  What is the time frame for the implementation of that plan? The gold that is smuggled outside is usually caught in South Africa or Zambia.  The country is losing out a lot.  What is the urgency of ensuring that the machines are installed?  I thank you.

         *HON. KAMBAMURA: Thank you Mr. Speaker.  We expect that before the end of this year, we will have installed those machines.  We have quite a few right now, but we want to install more efficient machines that will help us to detect the smuggling of gold.  So, by the end of this year, we expect that we will have rectified that.  I thank you.

         HON. MABURUTSE: Thank you, Mr. Speaker Sir.  My question is directed to the Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Resettlement.  It is my observation that the movement of inputs to GMBs is very low.  It is also my observation that the input providers have not been paid yet to deliver the inputs for the 2024/25 farming season.  What are the measures being taken to make sure that these input providers are paid to ensure that the inputs are delivered to GMBs countrywide in time?

         *THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. Z. ZIYAMBI): Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. That question has a lot of specifics, the slow movement of inputs to specific areas and non-payment to suppliers.  So, it requires interrogation, it is not policy.  In fact, behind what he said, there is a policy that we need to ensure that Presidential inputs reach where they are supposed to go and that suppliers are paid.  However, as for the specific issue of the movement of inputs and the payments, may the Hon. Member put that in writing so that it can be interrogated and answered in an intelligible manner?  I so submit.

         THE ACTING SPEAKER: Hon. Maburutse, the Hon. Minister is saying, firstly, your question is not a policy question.  Secondly, what you asked needs to be interrogated further, so put your question in writing.

         *HON. T. CHIKOMO: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is directed to the Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development.  Since we are now approaching the rainy season, some areas have not been regularised, they are peri-urban areas.  What is Government policy to ensure that roads are constructed in those areas since they are already in a bad state?  I thank you.        

         *THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL, AND PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. Z. ZIYAMBI): Mr. Speaker, that is very correct that there are roads that need to be attended to.  It is a question of the availability of funding.  Several roads are being done and not all roads can be done at the same time as you know we are on our fiscus and we are limited in terms of borrowing because of the sanctions that we have.  So, we cannot spend now and repay later because we are encumbered by our current situation.  We collect and we are very grateful to some of our companies, they are the ones who do the work and we pay them later. It is a serious matter; Hon. Members may not agree from the other side but no country can do what this country Zimbabwe is doing, operating without lines of credit to ensure that we can do infrastructural development and pay over time. So, because of the constraints that we have, we try to live within our means and do what is necessary.  That is why we always urge all the Hon. Members that this idea of sanctions will be biting all of us like what the Hon. Member has said.  I thank you.

         *HON. HAMAUSWA:  In the budget that was passed last year, the licences of cars were raised.  Small cars were paying 45 to 50 dollars, now they are paying 70 dollars.  Tollgate fees were also raised again.  We thought that since the licence fees had been raised, it was going to be used to bust sanctions, that we are now getting more resources so that those in peri-urban would also have good roads.

 So, I am seeking clarity on the money that is being realised.  We thought that money could be channeled to even put gravel on the roads or something better.

         *THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. Z. ZIYAMBI): Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir and I want to thank the Hon. Member for his question and also agreeing that what the Government does is to help the country like what he has alluded to about tollgate fees.  Mr. Speaker, that money is not found on a daily basis but it accumulates.  When cars pass through tollgates, it is not enough on a daily basis.  If it was possible, we could have finished.  So, we wait to do that on a monthly basis so that we go and construct the roads. 

THE ACTING SPEAKER:  I need to inform the House that I have got additional Ministers in the House; Hon. Dr. Muswere, Minister for Information Publicity and Broadcasting Service, Hon. Minister Prof. Mthuli Ncube, Minister of Finance.  We also have Ministers of State and Presidential Affairs and Devolution who are with us; Hon. E. Ndlovu for Matebeleland South, Hon. Adv. Mugadza for Manicaland and Hon. L. Matuke Minister of State for Presidential Affairs.

⁺HON. RITTA MPOFU: My question is directed to the Minister of Agriculture.  What are the measures being taken by the Ministry pertaining to the 15% quota of people living with disabilities when it comes to agriculture, in terms of livestock and crop business?  Thank you.

THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. Z. ZIYAMBI):  I think everyone gets land and in the Constitution, we do not have a percentage that is specifically indicated that should be reserved for disabled.  The policy position is that we give them preference.  So, I do not think there has been a discrimination so to speak, by neglecting the disabled in the allocation of land.  If there are cases that are there, perhaps the Hon. Member then needs to relate it to the Ministry so that if there is still land, they can favour those that were disadvantaged with the land.

+HON. RITTA MPOFU: I did not say it is not there in policy.  I know that there is a 15% quota for disabled people but my question is that when it comes to the allocation, how are the allocations structured in the whole country.  The percentages, how many benefitted? That is my question.

*HON. Z. ZIYAMBI: Her second question is a specific question which refers to the percentages. If she can go to the Ministry or puts the question in writing, the Minister will be able to investigate and come with a statement articulating on how the land was allocated and how the things are being done.

*THE ACTING SPEAKER: The Minister said if you can put your question in writing, you can be given a comprehensive response on the beneficiaries as you said the policy is there and the Minister has also said the policy is there. What we are looking at for we can leave it to the Ministry involved.

HON. KARIMATSENGA-NYAMUPINGA: There are so many issues about persons with disabilities that we have been raising in this House. It has been always and it is now statistically, ‘put it in writing’ but I think persons with disability are a priority as the Minister has alluded to before. They are the ones that they give first priority before they give the able-bodied and surely that information should stay in one’s fingertips that how many persons with disability have benefitted especially when we are dealing with issues of hunger. I am just asking the Minister to take this issue of persons with disabilities very serious because they are suffering of hunger. Most of the time, they are elbowed out as much as they are said to be the ones in front but always, we find them at the back.

HON. Z. ZIYAMBI: I think there is need for education to Hon. Members.   Questions without Notice are on policy. Questions with Notice can be very specific because you then allow a question to be interrogated and researched upon but the Questions with Notice are policy related. You cannot expect Hon. Ministers to cram all the statistics about what is happening and move with all those fingers, hence the need for that segment to be narrowed to issues to do with policy. Nobody indicated that issues of disability are not a priority but I do not believe that if they are a priority, they are a priority in terms of giving our agricultural land, it is about productivity.

I think certain issues let us not mop up emotions. There is something called discrimination that is allowed in the Constitution. We must not mix up issues. Issues of disability, the Minister will bring up the Bill. We are going to deal with it comprehensively but there is discrimination that is actually allowed in the Constitution because of certain factors that must be taken into consideration. You cannot expect what an able-bodied person can do and you expect a child to do. That is actually allowed. So, when we are talking of issues of productivity within the Ministry of Agriculture, issues of disability are with social welfare. So, I think let us not mop up emotions and attack the policy of this august House because we want certain issues to be dealt with. I thank you.

         *THE ACTING SPEAKER:  Hon. Minister thank you.  Order, Hon. Members on my left.  You make a lot of requests for the Ministers to come on Wednesdays and when they come, you do not give them a chance to explain policy.  You do not give them a chance to be heard in silence.  Now, Hon. Clifford Hlatywayo, I heard you saying that you are now fighting against each other.  So, I am ejecting you out of this House.  We do not want to shout.  Let us not reduce it to a circus.  If he is withdrawing, he has to do it wholeheartedly to the Minister. 

         *HON. C. HLATYWAYO:  Thank you Hon. Speaker, I withdraw my words wholeheartedly – [Laughter.] –

         HON. MAUNGANIDZE: My question is directed to the Minister of Health and Child Care.  Could you provide an upgrade on the current policy regarding the establishment and maintenance of mortuaries at local rural hospitals and what efforts are being made to ensure these facilities are accessible and adequately equipped? I thank you.

         THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF HEALTH AND CHILD CARE (HON. KWIDINI): I want to thank the Hon, Member for the question.  It is very true and it is a touching question because we have got our own relatives who die in the rural areas where there is need for mortuaries.  Yes, we have these mortuaries which house our people after they have died and these are mostly found at district or mission hospitals in the rural areas where there are doctors who certify that the person has actually died. 

         In terms of maintenance, it is true.  As the Ministry, there is a budget which is found under maintenance and repairs which is given to those institutions where we are supposed to have proper working mortuaries which will keep the corpses in a good state until it goes to the final resting place.  Most clinics in rural areas have no capacity to have these houses other than at district or mission hospitals which are found in most of areas.  So, I want to thank Hon. Member for that question because as the Ministry, we want to make sure all these facilities are found closer to people as possible so that we achieve our Vision by 2030.

         *HON. MAKOPE: Thank you.  Looking at that plan, we will see that probably Government does not have enough funds for maintenance.  Can we not partner with private players like Nyaradzo so that they can construct their mortuaries at those hospitals or they can put their facilities there in order to help the locals?  Lack of mortuaries at these institutions is a worrisome development.   

         *HON. KWIDINI: I want to thank you Hon. Member for the supplementary question.  It is true that we have what we call PPPs but when we look at Nyaradzo, it is a company in business.  If we leave them to do it on their own without Government intervention, the bereaved families may not have enough resources to foot their charges. Some people may not afford mortuary services.  We will end up with these private players taking livestock from the parents as a form of payment because they would have failed to pay but if people are able to take up  funeral policies like Nyaradzo, we are in agreement that the body of the departed can be taken to a Government mortuary whose charges are low. 

         As it stands now from what the Hon. Member has said, when it comes to PPPs, they should not belabour the villagers but if there are any means for them in trying to keep the body, they can go ahead and look at other means of keeping their bodies.

         HON. O. SIBANDA: My question is directed to the Minister of Finance.  What policies is the Government implementing to ensure that marginalised women in rural areas are effectively benefiting from the services of the Zimbabwe Women’s Micro Finance Bank especially considering that evidence on the ground suggest many women are not receiving the intended benefits.

         THE MINISTER OF FINANCE, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND INVESTMENT PROMOTION (HON. PROF. M. NCUBE):  I thank the Hon. Member for that important question but the bank in question does not reside under the Ministry of Finance.  As Ministry of Finance, we have responsibility of making sure that they have enough capital for the officials to have adequate tools of trade.  So, what we do is every year, through the budget process in this House, we try to allocate resources to recapitalise the bank.  We really feel that the executives are trying their best to make sure no one is left behind. As to the exact strategies, at district and provincial level, that is an enactment strategy that is left to the Ministry responsible for women that supervises the bank.  I thank you.

*HON. S. TSHUMA:  My question is directed to the Minister of Agriculture.  It is a supplementary question on what he had promised when it comes to the drilling of boreholes so that our cattle can get access to water at ward level.  How far are the plans because as we speak, there is no water in the dams.  There is no grass too because of the summer season. 

         *THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. Z. ZIYAMBI):  Thank you Mr. Speaker for the question which has been asked about the position of borehole drilling. The Government, through the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Resettlement has agreed that they can look for rigs and riggers so that they can go to various areas drilling boreholes. For the question to be answered fully, concerning where they have already drilled – I think if he puts it in writing so that a statement is brought with a breakdown on the number of boreholes that have been drilled, say in Tsholotsho and various areas and the progress so far.

         *THE ACTING SPEAKER:  Hon. Tshuma, I think you have heard what the Minister said. 

         HON. DR. KHUPE: Supplementary!

         *THE ACTING SPEAKER: How can you have a supplementary where the question has not been answered?

         ^*HON. DR. KHUPE: Maybe it will help.

         THE ACTING SPEAKER:  Hon. Khupe!

         HON. DR. KHUPE:  Thank you very much.

         *THE ACTING SPEAKER: I am not recognising you. I am saying a question was asked.  The Minister has advised the Hon. Member to put the question in writing so that he is adequately answered.  So, I do not see where a supplementary question arises from. 

         ^*HON. MAPIKI: Thank you Mr. Speaker. My question is directed to the Minister of Defence.  Firstly, I want to thank her for the work that they are doing along the borders, of clearing land mines.  My question is, what is Government policy on people who were affected by landmines after the war and even up to now?  Is there a fund like the War Victims Compensation Fund or what is Government policy in that regard?

         THE MINISTER OF DEFENCE (HON.  MUCHINGURI-KASHIRI): Thank you Hon. Speaker for the question which I have been asked concerning people who are being maimed because of landmines that were planted along our borders during the war.  The question is, is there a fund to help people who are injured by landmines?

         I want to say that it is true that the law which is there is only concerned with people who were injured during the war and not considering people who are being injured after the war. We came up with a plan with the Minister of Veterans of the Liberation Struggle Affairs, we had a conference with the Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare, looking at people who take care of the disabled people.  They have the mother policy in the Ministry of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare that, is there a way that these injured people can be assisted as we come up with an amendment in the Ministry of Veterans of the Liberation Struggle Affairs? The reason being for them to be able to accommodate people who were injured considering that everything has got to do with war.

So, those who oversee that policy is the Ministry of Veterans of the Liberation Struggle Affairs. We are trying, by all means, to work together.  I want to thank the Government because all the plans that take place, Presidential programmes, everything, even in the Ministry of Public Service and Social Welfare, they help with the provision of wheelchairs, they also give food to those people and the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Resettlement also supplies them with inputs.

So, before the amendments, these three ministries are working together to help because we are the ones who have programmes that deal with injured people.  After we have finished at looking at those programmes, we will be able to come up with awareness campaigns so that people will know how they can be helped because it is a very pertinent programme which the Government is really looking at because people are being injured. There should be a special programme that helps them.

^*HON. MAPIKI:  Thank you Mr. Speaker. I am satisfied with the Hon. Minister’s response.  However, I would like to know if the Ministry of Defence is working in conjunction with the companies that are conducting the demining programmes because there are a number of people who are still being injured.  Is there anything that can be done since we come across a lot of people who are being injured even up to date? 

         *HON. MUCHINGURI-KASHIRI:  Thank you for the supplementary question.  The truth is that the way we are working with the companies that are helping us in demining, they are helping a lot.  If there are people being injured in the areas where they are working, they are compensating with programmes such as construction of schools, clinics and making sure that there is water through the drilling of boreholes

         What makes us happy is that 95% of the places have been cleared.  Zimbabwe is one of the countries that had many landmines.  I want to inform this House that 95% of the areas have been demined, meaning that we are only left with a small portion.  We were thinking that we would have finished demining by 2025, but we do not have enough funding.  These companies are helping us.  We had been promised money, unfortunately many countries are being affected economically.  So, we are engaging them so that they keep funding us. Those companies working in the affected communities, I think, should help the injured.  We have cordial relations with those companies.  The injured are provided with money whenever they are in need of money.

         The Ministry of Defence has come up with a programme where we are compiling data in all the affected areas.  The data is on how many people have been injured and what their needs are so that we refer to other ministries that have those programmes because we work together as three ministries.  I think I have answered the Hon. Member’s question.

HON. BAJILA: Good afternoon Mr. Speaker, my question is going to the Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare. I would like to find out the Government’s food quality check policy for the drought mitigation programme. Do they check the food quality only at the point of entry or there are checks until the last depot where it gets to be received by the beneficiaries?

THE MINISTER OF PUBLIC SERVICE, LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE (HON. J. MOYO):  Thank you Mr. Speaker, and I want to thank the Hon. Member. The food quality is assessed by the Ministry of Agriculture, they are the ones who are responsible for sanitary checking all our food systems. However, sometime when there is food distribution and our people complain that the quality is not good we take it back to the Ministry of Agriculture. We have done that even with the food that is distributed by our partners when the quality is substandard like the one that was being distributed in Mangwe. We were able to take it back to the Ministry of Agriculture and the quality of the food was improved.

So, if there are any Members who feel that the quality of the food whether its wheat or maize is not suitable for consumption by our people, we want you to bring it back so that we can check. Also, our people must continue to have food that is fit for human consumption even in these times of El-Nino induced drought. So, that is what the Ministry of Agriculture does but everyone of us here can be a monitor to see that the food is good for consumption. I thank you.

HON. BAJILA: I would like to thank the Hon. Minister for the response because he brought some clarity on the issues. Often times recipients will take what is available to them at that point when it is being distributed.  They will only get to know of its quality long after they have arrived at their homes. Is there a platform or a system by which this report or quality feedback can be given? I have been to Matobo Ward 3 and 6, Insiza Ward 3 and I have seen a pattern.  I think if there could be platform by which if people discover that there is need to send some feedback on the quality of food they received, that platform needs to be known so that even if they discover it long after receiving, they can still bring back the feedback.  

HON. J. MOYO: Again, let me emphasise that at every food distribution center throughout the country, we have a complaints desk. These complaints must relate to food quality. It can also relate to people who are left out of the food distribution chain and that food complaints desk is there to assist.  What we need to do is to educate people about is that they should be vigilant about food quality.

I would also urge that anywhere where you see substandard food, bring it to the Social Development officers, to the DDCs and the District Food Relief Committee, they will be able to validate because in that food distribution committee there is somebody from Ministry of Agriculture who can quickly take remedial action. We must not distribute food which is not fit for human consumption. So, I urge all of us to disseminate that information. I thank you.

HON. BONDA: I just wanted to know if you reimburse the ration of maize that would have been collected and deemed not consumable by the community? I thank you.

THE ACTING SPEAKER:  Can you come again.

HON. BONDA: Thank you, if the food is substandard, I heard that the maize is taken back to the Ministry. In such events, do you reimburse because if it is not reimbursed, people most probably will prefer to keep or to consume the bad maize because you will not be getting any allocation again from the Ministry?

THE ACTING SPEAKER: Hon. Member, I do not think I understand your question; all the same, I will ask the Minister to intervene if he has understood you.  What you said is if there is a complaints desk and then you take this maize back to the desk obviously the authorities will give those people something to eat. It is not like they are taking the maize back to the Ministry of Agriculture themselves. It is the system that is taking it back. So it must give them maize but maybe I did not understand you, that is why I said I will indulge the Minister. 

^*HON. BONDA: May I clarify that in Shona. What we are saying is that if we have rotten maize and it is a whole truck load, people are given rotten maize.  That is what we have witnessed, we then discovered that the maize will be retracted. So, my question is when you take that whole lot, it is not only one bag, it is a whole truck load. Do you replace that maize because if you do not do that, they will end up keeping the maize?

^* HON. J. MOYO: Hon. Member, your question is very good; the question you have referred to is something that happens. We also give wheat and sorghum. We once took from Murewa and found that the maize was not good and people complained.  So, we returned it and it was investigated and they found out that it was not good. We did not distribute that food we replaced whatever is bad. We do not say tough luck but we replace that food. Thank you.

HON. ZIKI:  Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir and good afternoon. I would like to thank you for the opportunity you have given me to take part in this question and answer session. My question goes to the Minister of Mines and Mining Development. We have Chinese owned mining companies who are not doing enough in the way of empowering the people within the areas they are mining. Do we have a policy that can make sure that the people within these mining areas can benefit from the mining activities? I so submit.

         THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF MINES AND MINING DEVELOPMENT (HON. KAMBAMURA):  Thank you Hon. Speaker.  Thank you Hon. Ziki for asking the question.  As a Ministry, we also have noticed that there are a lot of breaches that are going on from mining companies, not only foreign owned but mining companies in general where they do not adhere to set standards of mining, some which include construction of roads that lead to their mining areas, suppression of dust on roads that they use for mining operations and also doing sustainable community projects under corporate social responsibility in the communities in which they operate.

         As a Ministry, we are going to come up with a corporate social responsibility policy which will bind all mining companies and also this will be a prerequisite to issuance of a mining title to any company so that our people benefit from their mineral resources.  Also, if there is a specific miner who the Hon. Member has noticed acting contrary to Government expectations, I would like to request the Hon. Member to bring that company forward so that we can take immediate action. Thank you Hon. Speaker.

         HON. JAMES: Thank you Mr Speaker.  Does the Ministry’s policy extend to the environment and how to fix the degradation of the environment for the people in these particular areas?  I will refer to two particular places, Penhalonga, Mutare River and the Victoria Falls-Binga Road which has basically been destroyed by the coal mining company up there.

         Of concern is when the rains come, black sludge is going to be washed into our main river, the Zambezi.  So, does the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development have oversight over the environmental issues or do you wait for the Ministry of Environment, Climate and Wildlife to do the work? Thank you.

         HON. KAMBAMURA: Thank you Hon. Speaker.  Considering the finite nature of our minerals and the destructive nature of mining operations before the start of any mining operations, the miner should have an environmental impact assessment report which would have been done by the Ministry of Environment, Climate and Wildlife.  As a Ministry, we also visit the mining site for verification and make sure that the area is open for pegging and also suitable for mining operations.

         We also do community engagement to get input from the communities in which the mine will be operating so that we avoid issues to do with environmental degradation and deforestation among other issues that are destructive. So yes, as Ministry, we do have an environmental policy where we call for all miners to reclaim their mining operations and also to submit to the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development mine closure plans which again should be carried out not only after the closure of the mine, but during the lifecycle or life span of the mining operation.  Thank you.

         Questions Without Notice were interrupted by THE ACTING SPEAKER in terms of Standing Order Number 68.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS WITH NOTICE  

PAYMENTS TOWARDS ZIMRA AUCTIONS AT MHLAHLANDLELA AND VICTORIA FALLS IN UNITED STATES DOLLARS

16. HON. BAJILA asked the Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion to explain to the House why the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) auctions conducted at the ZIMRA Mhlahlandlela and Victoria Falls offices were strictly payable in US dollars without any option of ZiG payments.

Mr. Speaker Sir, I wish to advise that the auction was conducted on 28^th June, 2024 at Mhlahlandlela where a number of goods from all stations reporting to the Bulawayo Regional office including Victoria Falls were sold.  Notwithstanding that the public notice specified that payments would exclusively be in foreign currency, I am pleased to advise Mr. Speaker Sir, that ZIMRA accepted both foreign currency and local currency.  I thank you.

HON. BAJILA:  Supplementary question.

THE ACTING SPEAKER:  Hon. Members, if you have supplementary questions, you do not shout from your seats please.

HON. BAJILA: Thank you Mr. Speaker.  My supplementary question arises from the fact that we are hearing this for the first time.  The information that is in the public domain is as advertised by ZIMRA and ZIMRA had clearly stated in all its advertisements that all the payments for this auction of second-hand goods are strictly in USD, not ZiG option.  So, does the Minister have systems of penalising such public institutions from misleading the public into believing that they are selling their second-hand goods only in USD because the public out there comprises of Zimbabweans who are selling brand new items and they are compelled to have a ZiG and a USD price or any other official currency price but in this case, the public institution is saying strictly in USD.  Does the Ministry have means of policing and penalising its own institutions from misleading the public into giving an insinuation that public institutions have no confidence in the ZiG?

HON. PROF. M. NCUBE: Thank you very much, Madam Speaker Ma’am.  Yes, indeed Hon. Bajila, we have a system of monitoring such behavior. This is why on this occasion; we were able to get ZIMRA to accept both foreign currency and the ZiG domestic currency.  So, there was compliance in the end.  I think the Hon. Member should be assured that going forward, there will be compliance.  He should not be worried at all; we were able to make sure that the situation was corrected.

POSITION ON CARBON TAX COLLECTIONS FOR 2022 AND 2023

17. HON. BAJILA asked the Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion to apprise the House on the Carbon Tax collections for the financial years 2022 and 2023 and to further state how these were spent.

THE MINISTER OF FINANCE, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND INVESTMENT PROMOTION (HON. PROF. M. NCUBE): Once again, I thank Hon. Bajila for the question. Madam Speaker Ma’am, the carbon tax collection for the period 2022 and 2023 amounted to 27,5 billion ZWG and 21,4 billion ZWG respectively.  Collections for the period January to August 2024 amounted to USD 52,8 million and also 23,7 million ZWG was also collected. 

Hon. Members, you will be aware that the carbon tax is levied for the benefit of the consolidated revenue fund with regards to dedicating the revenue collected towards efforts to address the negative environmental effect to date.   The Constitution establishing the Carbon Tax Sinking Fund will soon be tabled before Parliament after finalising the procedures for the operationalisation of the fund upon which the funds can be transferred to this Carbon Tax Sinking Fund and then the resources will be applied towards ameliorating the negative effects of the environmental factors.

HON. JAMES: Hon. Minister, can you confirm that 2% of these collections are due to EMA?

HON. PROF. M. NCUBE: Yes, indeed EMA is a key beneficiary of the resources coming from this carbon tax and they will be duly submitted in that direction.

POSITION ON SUGAR TAX COLLECTIONS FOR THE FIRST QUARTER OF 2024

18. HON. BAJILA asked the Minister of Finance, Economic and Investment Promotion to apprise the House on the Sugar-Tax collections for the first quarter of the year 2024 and their impact on curbing non-communicable diseases.

THE MINISTER OF FINANCE, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND INVESTMENT PROMOTION (HON. M. NCUBE): Madam Speaker Ma’am, special tax of beverages sugar content tax for the first quarter amounted to 7, 9 million ZiG, cumulative collections to date amounted to 248, 9 million ZiG which is equivalent to about USD 18 million. Treasury is in the process of working on modalities to join in with the Minister of Health for the procurement of cancer machines and drugs and distribution in our hospitals. I thank you.

    HON. BAJILA: I would like to thank the Hon. Minister for the response. Madam Speaker, you are aware that day in and day out, even as we speak of other diseases, the issue of cancer always pitches up and there. The issues of sugar tax collections and their deployment to make sure that cancer equipment is available in the country is a matter of urgency.  I would like to find out from the Hon. Minister if they have any timelines they are using, now that they have got a pocket of USD 18 million using this cancer treatment requirement that can be brought to the country in conjunction with the Ministry of Health. Are there any timelines that they are working on?

HON. PROF. M. NCUBE: Madam Speaker Ma’am, we are working speedily with the Ministry of Health and Child Care through the procurement processes so that we can acquire these machines and drugs as soon as possible.  I think I will be very happy, at least on the day that we receive the first machine as a beneficiary from this fund, to invite relevant Members of this august House to come and witness the installation of these machines in one or two of our hospitals.  We are working speedily, I can assure you Madam Speaker Ma’am.

DISBURSEMENT OF FUNDS FOR THE REFURBISHMENT OF THE NATIONAL SPORTS STADIUM

19. 19. C. MOYO asked the Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion to inform the House on the following—

• disbursements of funds for the refurbishment of the National Sports Stadium from January 2024 to date;
• schedule of contracts for the refurbishment of the National Sports Stadium; and
• total budget allocation and future disbursement timelines

THE MINISTER OF FINANCE, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND INVESTMENT PROMOTION (HON. M. NCUBE): The engagements with the Ministry of Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture indicated that to date, only USD 6,75 million of work has been contracted and this relates to infrastructural development including water reticulation, installation of the security systems such as the VOC, CCTV and access control equipment as well as the ticketing system for the National Sports Stadium. 

Out of this amount, the total value of work done and certified amounts to USD 3,8 million, which has since been paid for in full. 

Let me now turn to the schedule of contractors for the refurbishment of the Sports Stadium.  Presentations made by the Ministry of Local Government and Public Works during a technical meeting held in July 2024 indicated that a total budget of USD 25,4 million is required for the refurbishment of the National Sports Stadium of which 17,5 million was related to the refurbishment of infrastructure, improvement in security and access control and 7,9 million dollars is targeting other works such as palisade fencing, groundwork and other ancillary works.

I have a table in my notes here which gives a breakdown of the old budget of 25,4 million.  I am going to read it for the sake of the Hansard.  For water reticulation, the budget is USD 920 140, and for turnstiles, ticketing VOC, CCTV, and access control, the budget is USD 2,4 million.  For front lights, generator, and main arena generator it is USD 2 million, for floodlights and structural steel is USD 1 million.  So, the total of ongoing works as I said is USD 6,5 million dollars. The table is below: -

Contract Ref.	Works	Contract value (USD)
1.	Water reticulation	920,140
2.	Turnstiles, ticketing system, VOC, CCTV, and Access Control	2,504,520
3.	Floodlights, generator, and main arena generator	2,018,870
4.	Floodlights structural steel	1,032,770
	Total on-going works	6,476,300
	Outstanding works still to be contracted out	12,406,510
	Other requirements which including palisade  fencing, groundworks, beautification, and paving of roads among other works	5,616,240
	10% contingency	2,311,470
	Total	25,426,150

 

  Let me turn to outstanding works that still need to be contracted out, which is 12,4 million dollars and other requirements which include palisade fencing, groundworks, beautification, and paving of roads among others which is 5,6 million dollars.

  There is a 10% contingency, that is how contracts work of USD 2,3 million. So if you add everything it comes to USD 25,4 million USD.

  There is a third part to the question about the total budget allocation and future disbursement timelines.  The 2024 budget had an allocation of 2,75 million.  Already Treasury has disbursed 3,8 million towards payment of outstanding certificates.

 From our engagement with key stakeholders, it would appear that there is no predictable implementation and cash flow plan with attended milestones to effectively execute the required works at the stadium, given that only USD 6,5 million out of USD 25,4 million has been contracted out.

 In this regard, during the technical meeting held in July 2024, the Treasury requested that the responsible Ministry submit a comprehensive implementation and cashflow plan backed by duly concluded procurement processes that could assist the Treasury in determining the level of monthly resource requirements to facilitate the implementation of the works.

A letter from the Permanent Secretary for Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion to the Permanent Secretary of Local Government Public Work was written on the 29^th of July 2024 to this effect.  I thank you.

 

INFORMATION ON COMMUNITY SHARE OWNERSHIP TRUSTS IN HWANGE DISTRICT

22. HON. BONDA asked the Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion to inform the House whether there are any Community Share Ownership Trusts operating in the Hwange mining area and if so, to provide the list of CSOTs operating in Hwange District.

THE MINISTER OF FINANCE, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND INVESTMENT PROMOTION (HON. PROF. M. NCUBE):   Madam Speaker, I thank Hon. Bonda for the question which is requiring me to inform the House whether there are any Community Share Ownership Trusts operating in Hwange Mining area and if so to provide the loss of such operating in Hwange.

Hon. Members will be aware that Community Share Trusts were introduced by Government through the Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Act Chapter 14 Subsection (z)(3) SI 21, 2010.  Legislation that provides for the establishment of Community Share Ownership Trusts to empower the indigenise in Zimbabwe living close to the mines thereby ensuring that such communities directly benefit from mineral resources.

In view of the above, I will submit that the question be redirected to the Ministry responsible for the administration of the above-mentioned Act which is the Ministry of Industry and Commerce.  I thank you.

PAYMENT OF OCCUPATIONAL PENSION FUNDS BY INSURANCE AND PENSIONS COMMISSION

23. HON. MALINGANISO asked the Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion, to inform the House the measures being taken by the Insurance and Pensions Commission (IPEC) to ensure that occupational pension funds in the private sector are paid to contributors timeously and efficiently.

THE MINISTER OF FINANCE, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND INVESTMENT PROMOTION (HON. PROF. M. NCUBE): Thank you Madam Speaker.  I thank Hon. Malinganiso for the question which pertains to the measures being taken by the insurance and pensions commission (IPEC), to ensure that occupational pension fund in the private sector are paid to contributors timeously and efficiently.

Madam Speaker, the IPEC introduced a benefit tracker in 2021 which compiles all pensions funds and administrators to submit to the commission schedules of the actual benefit amounts that are being paid with each member of a pension fund every month.  This is over and above the structural requirement to file management accounts membership statistics and investment performance reports. 

The Commission asses the quantum of the actual benefit being paid relative to the investment performance of the assets supporting liabilities of each fund as part of ensuring fair treatment of customers.

In addition, the regulator places particular focus on benefits arrears, the regulator places particular focus on benefit arrears, if any, by each pension fund, age analysis of such arrears if they exist and reasons for accumulating benefit arrears receives quarterly returns for pensions. Part of the return will be indicating the monthly pensions benefits that would have fallen due and paid for each respective period. Further, IPEC assesses the benefits that are being paid in foreign currency and those in ZiG as informed by the currency in which the investment return is being received.

I now turn to another instrument which is used for supervision by IPEC which is Electronic Supervisory System. IPEC is in the process of procuring an electronic supervisory system which if successfully implemented, will be connected to the IT systems being run by individual pensions funds and pension administrators. The interoperability of the IPEC’s supervisory system with the IT systems of industry players is expected to facilitate real-time access to databases of pension funds, fund administrators and other players in the insurance and pensions industry. Therefore, this will help IPEC to enforce compliance without having to wait for three months to receive quarterly reports.

I now turn to yet another monitoring system under IPEC’S purview, management of information system (MIS) monitoring. As part of onsite inspections, the Commission also carries out MIS inspection to ensure that pension funds or administrators have the systems in place which promote data accuracy and timeous payment of the rights of benefits.

Turning to the complaints handling mechanism which is part of the fabric of monitoring what is going on in the industry. IPEC has established a dedicated complaint resolution mechanism to address grievances relating to non-payment of benefits by private occupation funds, among other complaints. The pension scheme members can easily lodge complaints through various communication platforms including SMS, WhatsApp, Facebook, emails including handwritten letters, which I investigated promptly, ensuring that issues are resolved efficiently and effectively.

Finally, on public awareness campaigns; to empower pension fund members, IPEC has been carrying out awareness campaigns to inform them about their rights concerning pension payouts, claims process and the timelines involved. This initiative aims to reduce the number of queries and complaints regarding delays and payments. Furthermore, awareness raising measures have been targeted at trustees of pensions funds to remind them of their judiciary role of protecting the interests of fund members ahead of their personal interests.

HON. MALINGANISO: I would like to thank the Minister for a comprehensive response. You note that NSSA actually pays more to pensioners yet when you check the payments or juxtapose the payments and the contributions, it is sort of in the private sector workers are contributing more to the company at which they work and less to NSSA but when they receive their pensions, you realise that NSSA actually pays more in comparison to what is actually coming from the private sector. My question to the Minister is there a possibility where maybe through legislation or policy we arrive at a place where contributions are more to the NSSA that is reliable and less to the private sector?

HON. PROF. M. NCUBE: I thank the Hon. Member for that very astute and relevant observation of the differential payments between the private sector pension schemes versus the NSSA pension scheme. He is correct, there is a difference but you see the private sector pension schemes and NSSA are not under the same regulatory roof. They are not both regulated by IPEC. The private schemes that are regulated by IPEC but the NSSA is regulated by the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare. So, it is under two regulatory mechanisms and it is not very easy to quickly harmonise those.

However, he has raised an important point that I think we have to look into between IPEC, Treasury as well as the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare to see if we can close the gap so that there is a sense of fairness right across the economy in society.  It is a very important question indeed.  Hopefully, the not so distanced future will come up with a solution to make sure that there is harmony and that gap is closed.  I thank you.

POLICY REGARDING ASSIGNING OF GENDER IDENTITY ON BIRTH CERTIFICATES TO PERSONS BORN WITH AMBIGUOUS GENITALIA

32. HON. GWABENI asked the Minister of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage to inform the House on Government policy regarding the assigning of gender identity on birth certificates to persons born with ambiguous genitalia.

THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS AND CULTURAL HERITAGE (HON. SANYATWE):  It is my pleasure to apprise the House on the question raised by Hon. Gwabeni.  The Constitution of Zimbabwe, Amendment Number 20 Act of 2013 only recognises male and female sex. 

However, in circumstances where persons are born with ambiguous genitalia, the medical doctor is the one who determines the sex of the child after thorough examination.  As the child grows and there is realisation of genital changes, a review of the sex can be done by the medical doctor.  The Central Registry Department then changes the sex of the child upon recommendation by the medical doctor. I thank you.

ENHANCEMENT OF THE MOBILITY AND OPERATIONAL CAPACITY OF POLICE STATIONS

33. HON. MADZIVANYIKA asked the Minister of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage what the Ministry plans are regarding enhancing the mobility and operational capacity of police stations, particularly those with significant transport constraints as is the case with Mbizo Police Station in Kwekwe which currently has only one vehicle to cater for a constituency of over 100 000 residents.

THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS AND CULTURAL HERITAGE (HON. SANYATWE):  May I start by thanking the Hon. Member for raising such an important matter, not only to the people of Mbizo Constituency, but the rest of Zimbabwe.  I wish to inform the House that as a Ministry, we are committed to ensuring that our police stations across the country are fully capacitated so that they effectively discharge their duties in line with the organisation’s mandate.  You will recall Madam Speaker, that for many years, Zimbabwe Republic Police has been operating with depleted vehicular base owing to breakdowns among other issues.  Suffice to say that for the past few years, Government has been resourcing all police stations with new vehicles, beginning with at least one vehicle per station.

         At present, Zimbabwe Republic Police has a vehicular strength of 2 427 against an ideal establishment of 9 320, reflecting a shortfall of 6 898 vehicles.  Of the 2 427 available vehicles, 1 007 are off road for various reasons, including shortage of spare parts, leaving only 1 420 for all police mobility requirements.  The Ministry is fully aware of mobility challenges faced by police stations, bases and posts across the country and that each policing area has its own unique demands.  I would like to take this opportunity to inform the House and the Hon. Member that all these challenges, including that of the Mbizo Police Station in Kwekwe are being addressed on a rolling basis.  Some of the acutely affected police stations will be having additional vehicles at the conclusion of the ongoing procurement processes.

         I wish to inform the House that the Hon. Members should continue to build strong bonds of co-operation with officers commanding police provinces and districts together with their respective police community relations and liaison officers so that urgent concerns do not wait for the sitting of Parliament but are quickly responded to.  I thank you.

HON. MADZIVANYIKA:  I would like to thank the Minister for the response.  I am glad that they are on a procurement drive to acquire vehicles.  This is against the background that Mbizo and Kwekwe in general Madam Speaker, has the highest rate of murder cases in this country from official statistics.  So, I want to hear from the Minister, when do you think this process of procurement will end in light of the danger that we face as Kwekwe community?

         HON. SANYATWE:  I cannot give the specific time but once the process is done, I will then come to the House to inform you.  Thank you.

         THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS AND CULTURAL HERITAGE (HON. SANYATWE) (SPKNG)…  I thank you.

PAYMENT OF PENSIONS TO PERSONS WHO LEFT GOVERNMENT SERVICE FROM 2007-2009

49. HON. BAJILA asked the Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare to apprise the House on the status of payments of pensions owed to persons who left Government service during the 2007–2009 period and to confirm whether there are any plans to introduce a foreign currency component to payments of such pensions.

         THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF PUBLIC SERVICE, LABOUR, AND SOCIAL WELFARE (HON. DINHA):  Thank you Madam Speaker. I want to thank the Hon. Member for the question.

         Madam Speaker, allow me to inform the House that Treasury allocated the ZiG equivalent to USD25 million to the Public Service Commission for disbursement to pensioners who qualify for the pre-2009 compensation for loss of value.  The Public Service Commission paid the first batch of pensioners on 26^th July, 2024 while the second batch was paid on 27^th August, 2024.  All compensation was paid in the local currency as directed by Treasury. I so submit Madam Speaker Ma’am. 

CLEARANCE OF BEAM ARREARS FOR SCHOOLS IN BULAWAYO PROVINCE

50. HON. BAJILA asked the Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare to inform the House the status of BEAM arrears clearance for the following schools in Bulawayo Province— (a) Matshayisikhova Primary School;

(b) Luveve Primary School;

(c) Josiah Chinamano Primary School;

(d) Mtshingwe Primary School;

 (e) Emakhandeni High School;

(f) Inyanda High School; and

 (g) Luveve High School.

         THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF PUBLIC SERVICE, LABOUR, AND SOCIAL WELFARE (HON. DINHA):  Madam Speaker Ma’am, I refer to the question by Hon. Bajila in view of the understanding of the outstanding tuition fees and levies payments for BEAM beneficiaries in the above-mentioned schools.  Allow me to inform the House that all the outstanding arrears for the year 2022 have been cleared in all the schools in question, save for Luveve High School. They did not submit their claim forms that is why their arrears are not cleared.        Madam Speaker Ma’am, let me take this opportunity to encourage all schools to submit claim forms in time so that their information is captured early and allow payments to be made on time. 

         Fees for the years 2023 and 2024 respectively are outstanding in all schools in question as tabulated before.  There is Inyanda Secondary school, ZiG4 604 600 was paid and that was the amount that was due.  For 2023, the arears are not yet paid as well as for 2024.  Then there is Emakhandeni Secondary school, the amount that was due was also paid. In 2022 for the three terms that is ZiG3 214 450.00; for 2023 and 2024 respectively, the arrears are not yet paid. 

         For Luveve High School, the arrears are not yet paid for 2022, 2023 and 2024 because they did not submit their claims.  For Luveve Primary, the arrears were paid in full, for the three terms in 2022 but for 2023 and 2024 they are not yet paid; Matshayisikhova Primary, the arrears are paid in full for the three terms in 2022 as well as for Josiah Chinamano Primary and Mtshingwe Primary. 

         Madam Speaker, allow me to once again highlight to the House that my ministry is aware of all the outstanding school fees and levies in all schools, including all the schools in question and my ministry is collaboratively working with the Ministry of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion to ensure that all the outstanding fees are settled.

The Ministry has so far submitted a comprehensive request citing the total amounts owed to schools across the country to Treasury for the release of the BEAM funds.  I so submit Madam Speaker Ma’am.

HON. SHIRIYEDENGA: Thank you Madam Speaker Ma’am, I thank the Hon. Minister for that response.  Just last week, we had the opportunity to visit some schools throughout the country.  The majority of those schools also indicated that they last received BEAM in 2022.  What was of concern Madam Speaker is the fact that even those parents who are able to pay fees, only a few of them are paying.  At one school in Midlands, there was an indication that only about 30% of the parents have paid.  In that respect through your collaboration with the Minister of Finance and Investment Promotion, what are the measures that you are putting in place to actually cushion those schools that have not received funds from BEAM and also where parents are failing to pay?  At the end of the day, the schools do not have adequate funds to actually conduct some operations and also for the purchase of teaching and learning materials.  What is there in place to actually cushion such schools?  I thank you.

THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF PUBLIC SERVICE, LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE (HON. DINHA): Thank you Madam Speaker.  My Ministry pays for the vulnerable students who are not able to pay fees and for those who are able, I think it is the responsibility of the school leadership and the SDC to find ways to coerce the parents to pay fees. I so submit

PROVISION OF RELISH TO MITIGATE MALNUTRIRTION

51. HON. M. MGUNI asked the Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare whether the Ministry has plans to give relish to those receiving maize meal as a way of mitigating malnutrition.

THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF PUBLIC SERVICE, LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE (HON. DINHA): Thank you Madam Speaker and I want to thank the Hon. Member for her question.  Madam Speaker, the Government Food Deficit programme only provides for cereals and not relish. Communities are encouraged to source for relish so as to have nutritional meals.

May the Hon. Member be reminded that when assisting communities, their coping capacities should not be taken away.  Communities should put effort and source their own relish and not to have a dependent syndrome. Social protection is about capacitating communities and individuals on coping strategies. 

PLANS TO SUPPORT PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES AND THE ELDERLY

52 HON. MAKUMIRE asked Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare whether the Government has any plans in place to support people with disabilities and the elderly, especially during years of drought.

THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF PUBLIC SERVICE, LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE (HON. DINHA): Thank you Madam Speaker and I want to thank Hon. Makumire for such a pertinent question.   Madam Speaker, I refer to the question by Hon. Makumire with regards to whether the Government has any plans in place to support persons with disabilities and the elderly especially during drought.

Allow me to inform the House that Government has plans for all vulnerable groups including persons with disabilities and the elderly.  As a matter of fact, these two groups are always prioritised in the Ministry’s drought relief interventions.

The Food Deficit Mitigation Programme in this period of the El Nino induced drought is mainstreaming both disability and ageing; hence both persons with disabilities and the elderly are receiving support.   From our statistics, 20% of the first blitz beneficiaries were elderly persons while 5% were persons with disabilities.

PROGRAMMES AND STATISTICS FOR PEOPLE RECEIVING GOVERNMENT ASSISTANCE

         53 HON. MAKUMIRE asked the Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare whether the Ministry has any programmes and statistics for those receiving Government assistance.

THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF PUBLIC SERVICE, LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE (HON. DINHA): Thank you Hon. Speaker.  I refer to the question by Hon. Makumire. The Ministry has a quite a number of programmes which include: -

FOOD DEFICIT MITIGATION PROGAMME: Provision of food to the food insecure households. The programme targets the food insecure households, identified after a livelihood assessment survey that is conducted by the Food and Nutrition Council of Zimbabwe.  Government then supports 100% of the identified following a cycle and the peak hunger period is January to March of each year which sees many people benefiting during this period.  To date, 6.7 million individuals have benefited from this program. 

BASIC EDUCATION ASSISTANCE MODULE:  A community based social safety net system to ensure access to education for vulnerable children. The ministry intends to support more than 1.5 million children with both tuition and examination fees.

CASH FOR CEREAL IN URBAN AREAS: For cash and cereals we have not started yet but registration for beneficiaries is still running concurrently with data cleaning, validation and pay sheet generation for those whose registration process has been completed.  As soon as the validation is complete districts are sending their pay sheets to necessitate disbursements of funds to beneficiaries. The disbursements will run concurrently with mop up registration for the remaining wards. A total of 7 million ZIG has been disbursed on the 13^th September 2024 and currently distribution modalities are under way. 

MONTHLY MAINTENANCE ALLOWANCES: These are cash transfers given to the indigent and in need of assistance and this follows a self-targeting methodology.  An individual approaches their nearest office for assistance and after means testing they are enrolled into the programme to receive cash assistance for a period of 12 months, after which reassessments are done to determine continued support.

HEALTH ASSISTANCE: This entails the provision of medical assistance to the vulnerable.  On an annual basis, over 10 000 individuals are assisted under this program.  The treatment orders are mostly accepted in public hospitals, mission hospitals and some local authority clinics.

         HON. MAKUMIRE: Thank you Madam Speaker. The Hon. Minister, during Question and Answer, apprised the House that the assessments that were done by ZIMLAC indicated that more than 9 million people were considered vulnerable and just now, the Minister advised us that 6.7 million have received aid from Government. I just want to ask the Hon. Minister to apprise the House and give us assurance whether the remaining 2.3 million people are going to get assistance before it is too late considering that the whole country did not receive adequate rains this year. I also want to ask the Minister to inform the House whether cash disbursements are in USD or in ZiG…

         THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER (HON. TSITSI. ZHOU): You can only ask one question.

         HON. MAKUMIRE: It is 1A and1 B.

         THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Makumire. During Questions Without Notice session, yes, the Hon. Minister of Public Service, indicated that as you rightfully said, the Government had the provision of 9 million people but only 6.3 million were written according to the database by their staff. The remainder, he actually said they are waiting for them to be written so that food can be disbursed to the remainder and even more. Hon. Minister, you might want to add to that but the Hon. Minister clearly explained it.

         HON. M. DINHA: As I was talking about the food deficit mitigation programme, I indicated that to date, 6.7 million individuals have benefited from this programme and in the rural areas, I know there is more than 9 million people. According to the assessments that were made by ZIMLAC, it shows that less than 6 million people were food insecure. Therefore, they were in need of food. The assessments are still in progress and as we go on, the number of the food insecure vulnerable people are increasing. I think in the near future, we are going to reach that target. Thank you.

WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS TO QUESTIONS WITH NOTICE

NUMBER OF CHINESE BUSINESSES OPERATING IN ZIMBABWE

20. HON. KARENYI asked the Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion to inform the House on the number of Chinese businesses operating in Zimbabwe, their registration status and to further state whether they are paying taxes and, if so, to provide their percentage contribution to the fiscus.

THE MINISTER OF FINANCE, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND INVESTMENT PROMOTION (HON. PROF.M. NCUBE): Madam Speaker, currently there are 384 Chinese owned businesses registered for tax purposes in the country and, to date, the companies have contributed ZiG 165,4 million and US$155 million, across major tax heads such as income tax, pay as you earn (PAYE) and value added tax (VAT). The collections are summarised below:

Revenue Head	ZiG	USD
Aids Levy	1 661 259	550 705
Capital Gains Tax	5.26	16 522 799
Value Added Tax	55 803142	83 112 408
Income Tax	3 953 449	15 933 553
Paye As You Earn	27 949 493	15 771 546
Withholding Tax	76 046 989	22 997 446
Total	165 414 337	154 888 457

 

COLLECTION OF THE 1% COMMUNITY SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY LEVY ON LITHIUM, BLACK GRANITE AND QUARRY STONES

 

21. HON. GUYO asked the Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion to apprise the House on the following:

(a) whether Treasury has started collecting the 1% Community Social Responsibility (CSR) levy on lithium, black granite, quarry stones and uncut/ cut dimensional stones as provided in the Finance Act of 2024 and to further state how much has been collected to date;

(b) to state how the 1% levy will be distributed to benefit the communities affected by mining operations; and

(c) to state the relevant authority responsible for the distribution of this levy.

THE MINISTER OF FINANCE, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND INVESTMENT PROMOTION (HON. PROF.M. NCUBE): Madam Speaker, I am pleased to advise that collections for the levy commenced on 1 January 2024, in line with the provisions of Section 36 P of the Income Tax Act.  Cumulative collections to date are shown on the table below:

Type of Mineral	ZWL	ZIG	USD
Lithium		3 194 916.41
Granite	814 691 794.94	303 238.42	-
Uncut Dimensional Stone
Cut Dimensional Stone		8 425.08
Quarry stones		291 205.79	21 824.52
TOTAL	814 691 794	3 797 785.70	21 824.52

 

Treasury will, in due course advise the House of the distribution of the Funds to the respective communities where such minerals are extracted.

I also wish to advise that the disbursement of funds collected will be guided by the provisions of Section 36(P)(3) of the Income Tax Act, which provides that the Minister shall constitute a Fund through which levies will be appropriated.

         Questions With Notice were interrupted by THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER in terms of Standing Order No 68.

MOTION

BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE

HON. KAMBUZUMA: Madam Speaker Ma’am, I move that Orders of the Day, Numbers 1 to 21 on today’s Order Paper be stood over until Order of the Day Number 22 has been disposed of.

HON. NYANDORO: I second.

Motion put and agreed to.

SECOND READING

FINANCE (2024) BILL [H. B. 8, 2024]

Twenty-Second Order read: Second Reading: Finance (2024) Bill [H. B. 8, 2024].

Question again proposed.

THE MINISTER OF FINANCE, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND INVESTMENT PROMOTION (HON. PROF. M. NCUBE): Madam Speaker, the Bill seeks to give effect to the revenue and tax measures that I announced in the 2024 Mid-Term Budget and Economic Review Statement that I delivered on the 25^th of July, 2024. These measures seek to enhance tax collections to support the transformation agenda through the reform of policy and administrative practices. Additional measures seek to augment recently introduced monitory and fiscal policy measures and to provide relief to tax papers.

In summary, when you look at Clause 2, of the proposed Bill, it contains proposals to amend the corporate income tax. Clause 2, provides for payment of corporate income tax on a 50/50 basis for corporates with revenue that exceed 50% in foreign currency and also provide for payment of tax in local currency proportionately where companies revenue earned exceeds 50% in local currency. This clause also seeks to regularise corporate income tax payments made during the second quarterly payments dates for 2023 and 2024 in line with paragraph 453 and 458 of the Mid-Term Budget Review.

Clause 3 and 4, you will be aware that since the introduction of the ZiG, tax free threshold and tax bands needed to be adjusted and this was done through Statutory Instrument 74 of 2024. So, Clause 3 and 4, thus validate the adjustments and also differentiate the tax periods as provided for under paragraph 503 and 504 of the Mid-Term Budget review.

I now turn to the automated financial transactions tax in Clause 5. This clause seeks to regularise the increase in automated financial transaction rate as highlighted in paragraph 509. In order to provide relief to tax payers, thereby enhancing tax compliance, Government made necessary adjustment to presumptive tax. These Clauses 6, 10 and 12 that seek to revise downwards the presumptive taxes and also to broaden the tax base to include beauty parlors, fitness centres and butchery operators as provided for under paragraph 470.

Clause 10, compels professional bodies to demand tax clearance certificates before renewal of their practicing licences for independent professionals. Clause 7, seeks to eliminate professional treatment on specified transactions and align rates of the IMTT tax on local currency transactions to foreign and outbound transactions as well as Zimbabwe Gold backed digital tokens.

Clause 8, provides for two periods of assessment for tax purposes as provided for under paragraph 504, of the Mid-Term Budget Review. Clause 8, seeks to provide the definition of Zimbabwe Gold-backed digital token.

Clause 11, seeks to remove the reference to the Zimbabwe dollar on the tax-free portion of the bonus payment and substitute these tax-free portions of US$700 or local currency equivalent pursuant of paragraph 515 of the Mid-Term Budget Statement.

I now turn to Clauses 13 and 14. These two Clauses seek to regularise the introduction of the 2% capital gains withholding tax as final tax for the period of six months as provided for in paragraph 511 of the Mid-Term Budget Statement. Please note that there is typing error in Clause 13 in the Finance Bill which needs to be corrected and should read as follows: Rates of Capital Gains Tax instead of Rates of Capital Gains Withholding Tax, and a notice of amendment has been provided accordingly.

Clause 15, pertains to deferment of value added tax. In order to safeguard the tax base, Government introduced remedial measures to reduce the tax debt emanating from non-compliant beneficiaries of the deferment of value added tax facility upon importation of capital equipment. This Clause 15, thus provides for regularisation of compliance measures. This clause also provides for VAT deferment on projects with gestation periods of two to three years for manufacturing and mining sectors respectively. This is contained in paragraph 501 and 502, in the Mid-Term Budget Statement.

Clause 16, provides for suspension of collection of tax on exportation of unbeneficiated platinum for the period 1, January, 2023 to December, 2024. Clause 17, seeks to regularise measures under the route to markets announced in a press statement on 8^th of January, 2024. Subsection (3), specifically provides for the 5% withholding tax on the invoice value purchased by non-compliant manufacturers, wholesalers and retailors or any person and this is in line with paragraph 516 to 523 in the Mid-Term Budget Statement.

         I now turn to Clause 18. This clause provides for the charging of the special surtax on sugar content, on beverages with effect from 9^th February 2024. Notwithstanding the current mitigatory measures on transit fraud, incidences whereby goods imported under the removal in transit or RIT facility are offloaded on the local market without payment of the requisite duty and these continue unabated. So, Clause 19, thus provides for the payment of excise duty and levies on fuel under removal in transit except for fuel uplifted from the National Insurance Oil Company of Zimbabwe (NOIC), Msasa and Mabvuku depot.

         I wish to make an addition to this Clause 19 by including Feruka on the list of exempted depots. However, this will be limited to specific agency and a notice for amendment has been submitted. Clause 20, seeks to confirm the subsidiary legislation that effected the charging of special surtax on sugar content, on beverages and e-cigarettes implemented through Statutory Instruments 249:2023, 16:2024 and 139:2024. I now turn to Clauses 21, 22, 23 and 27. These clauses remove reference to the Zimbabwe dollar and replaces it with Zimbabwe currency which is the ZiG. Clauses 24, 25 and 26, these clauses make reference to the issuance of ZiG notes and coins and the conversion of Zimbabwe dollar balances into ZiG. Clause 28 pertains to reserve sectors. This clause seeks to amend the Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Act by adding more sectors to the existing sectors. Clause 29 seeks to give more power to PRAZ to monitor, compile and provide a framework where an exemption can be revoked if public entities do not act responsibly.

         I now turn to Clauses 31 and 32. These clauses are meant to implement section 198A of the Constitution in order to improve on accountability of all public officers with respect to disclosure of the extent resources of their wealth and their interest in certain businesses. This asset disclosure is vital as it helps Government to fight corruption within the public sector and to mould good governance. Thus, a detailed analysis of the Finance Bill. I have provided comprehensive clause by clause analysis of the Finance Bill. I now move that the Bill be read a second time. I thank you.

HON. MADZIVANYIKA: Thank you Minister for the additional amendment that you have made. I have got three items to discuss. The most fundamental is the issue of operationalisation of the Bill or some provisions of the Bill before Parliament has approved. I can give specific example to Clause 19, which talks about the issue of removal in transit, the issue of the payment of duty at a point of entry and refund at the point of exit. So, my important question to the Minister is what point of law gives you the authority to operationalise because it is now already happening. ZIMRA is now already calculative; getting a deposit at the point of entry and the refund at the point of exit. So, I want that clarification from the Minister because it is very important because as Parliament, our fundamental role is to make laws and also to protect such laws.

Secondly, I am concerned about the appropriation. On 5^th of March, 2024, the Minister, through his Monetary Policy Statement, introduced a new currency which is the Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG), but all the bank balances which were previously owned by businesses and individuals were converted to ZiG, using an exchange rate of 2498.72 to 1 ZiG. However, recently when the Minster introduced his mid-term budget review statement, the conversion rate which was used when converting the Zimbabwe dollar balances to ZiG is different from the one that the Minister has used to convert the Zimbabwean dollar budget to the ZiG budget. The new exchange rate which he used to convert from the Zimbabwean dollar budget to ZiG was 662.69. What is the implication Madam Speaker?

The implication of this is that, the budget that we have, the new ZiG dominated budget is bigger than the original budget that was approved by Parliament by more than four times. Therefore, that requests or requires for a supplementary budget.   I want a clarification from the Minister as to the variation because what is good for the goose must be good for the gander. The rules must not change when you are converting my wealth which was in my bank using a different exchange rate. That means when you are converting the budget using a different exchange rate again, to me it outrageously defies the logic.

Lastly, the issue of RIT has an exemption on fuel which is being bought from; for example, Mozambique or Beira using the pipeline, is exempt for the payment of deposit at the port of entry. The question that comes is why? Because a Zambian national or a DRC national who wishes to buy fuel from Zimbabwe from NOIC or from Beira, as long as they made their transaction to buy fuel from Beira but uses the Feruka pipe line to Zimbabwe, that fuel is exempted from the duty at the point of exit. It means that a Zambian national collects his fuel from NOIC or from Mabvuku, then goes with it to Zambia and that fuel is exempt for the payment of duty at the point of entry and refunding of the deposit at the point of exit.

However, I would see a danger that one might buy fuel from NOIC without a deposit and still drop the fuel in Zimbabwe. What safeguard do you have in that regard? The application of this policy is different from what the Minister has proposed than what ZIMRA is doing on the ground. What ZIMRA is doing right now on the ground is that, when importing fuel for transit purposes, at the border, the clearing agent is requested to pay a deposit. So, ZIMRA will get a deposit from the clearing agent’s account and the importer will pay cash deposit at the border. At the point of exit, the agent is not refunded his deposit from his agency bond. At the same time, the importer is not refunded his money until he comes back, for example, from DRC with a proof of delivery, to say I have delivered fuel in DRC, here is the proof delivery. Then ZIMRA can now refund that money. I think that one interferes in the sovereignty of other nations. I think it has to be messaged to consider that as well. The way it has been operationalized, to me is not sustainable. Thank you very much.

HON. MUSHORIWA: Thank you Madam Speaker for giving me the opportunity in respect to the Finance Bill that the Hon. Minister has so laid before this august House.  First and foremost, Hon. Speaker, I just want to bring firstly, the hygienic issues pertaining to this Finance Bill. Hon. Speaker, from 2015 up to today, the Hon. Minister is coming to this august House knowing fully well that the Government has been exceeding the Budgets that this House has given them and that the Hon. Minister has not made effort to make sure that condonation Bills are brought before this august House. In real terms Madam Speaker, we are actually violating, not only the Constitution but we are also violating the Public Finance Management Act and are in contravention of Chapter 17 of our Constitution, which mandates this Parliament to ensure that there is utmost care and due diligence in the management of the public purse. The Hon. Minister is aware of this issue because we have actually raised it before.

The second issue Hon. Speaker, which I wanted the Hon. Minister to take note is last year, when we passed the 2024 Budget and when we debated the Finance Bill, your Committee Madam Speaker, the Budget and the Finance Committee, made several recommendations which we spoke and gave to the Hon. Minister in this august House. It said that the Finance Bill, in the current state in which it was, was not sustainable.  It could not work and could not help to uplift the standards of living for citizens of this country. There were several proposals that were there.

On 10^th of January, this year Madam Speaker, the Hon. Minister, without even coming back to this august House to simply say, Parliament, you were right. The Budget Committee, you were correct. He then made a reversal statement on 10^th of January, trying to undo the provisions of the Finance Bill, which had been passed through this House, against the advice from the Budget Finance Committee and Hon. Members of this august House.

Thirdly, Madam Speaker, there is also the issue that has been raised fundamentally.  I will tell you why this is crucial.  We passed this Budget last year when it was $58. 2 trillion. The exchange rate then was around USD1 to about RTGS6 thousand. The Hon. Minister was aware that the RTGS then went down exceedingly to the extent that by the time we then converted to ZIG, it was standing at 1:33 000 ZIG, but what does the Hon. Minister do? The Hon. Minister does not seek to favor this august House upon which mathematical formula that he has used to the claim that he cannot come with a mid-term review without a supplementary budget.

Madam Speaker, the challenge that we then have as if that was not enough, when ZiG was introduced, we asked in this august House, Hon. Minister, what are the important fiscal measures that you are putting to make sure that we stabilise the ZiG and the Hon. Minister promised us to say that, we are coming up with measures and they took too long. Not only did they took too long Madam Speaker, what has happened today is that whereas the monetary authorities had actually come and the Zimbabwean citizens had actually accepted ZiG, but what came Madam Speaker is actually the complementary fiscal moves from the fiscal authorities.

What do I mean Madam Speaker? First and foremost, we were told that when people were going to be paying their taxes, it was supposed to make the necessary legislative changes or even come up with a statutory instrument or even a worse tool. If coming up with a legislation was too cumbersome, they could even have involved the Presidential Temporal Powers, so that at least we safeguard the ZiG.  What has happened now Madam Speaker, is that ZiG now as we speak, has actually been hit and bartered not because the Central Bank is failing, but the problem as we indicated when we discussed the monetary policy was as long as the fiscal authorities do not come to the party to support the ZiG, then we are not going anywhere. This is where we have actually come back to.

HON. BUTAU: Point of order Madam Speaker.

THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order, order what is your point of order Hon. Member.

HON. BUTAU: Hon Mushoriwa is indicating a prospective and speculative statement that the ZiG has taken a knock.

THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order, order Hon. Mhangwa. Order, Hon. Members.

HON. BUTAU: It is a very speculative statement and what we know and what he is saying actually undermine our currency - [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] - I do not think that it is responsible for a Member of Parliament to say things that undermine our currency.  Thank you.

THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Hon. Mushoriwa, please stick to the debate on the Finance Bill.

HON. MUSHORIWA: Madam Speaker, indeed, what I am mentioning here is within the confines of the Finance Bill. The effect Madam Speaker which I just wanted to raise - all of us here actually go to various formal businesses. We go to OK, Pick n Pay supermarkets and other supermarkets.  What has happened Madam Speaker is that inflation in terms of the US dollar in the formal economy has actually gone up.  If you go to the OK supermarket today, something which was costing 50 cents is now costing $1.16.  The reason is primarily because formal business now wants to hedge against what they see as instability of the ZiG currency - [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.]-

HON. DHLIWAYO: Point of order Madam Speaker.

THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Mushoriwa. Order Hon Members. What is your point of order Hon. Dhliwayo?

HON. DHLIWAYO: The Hon. Member is debating monitory policy issues but I think he better concentrate on the Finance Bill and if he has issues to do with inflation, I think it is best suited for the question and answer time session.  Thank you.

THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Mushoriwa. Hon Members, it is very important to go to your WhatsApp group for the Parliament and the Finance Bill is in there. We want to be a progressive Parliament and be debating things that have been furnished clause by clause by the Hon. Minister of Finance.

Hon Mushoriwa, it is important to stick to your debate without undermining the Zimbabwean currency.

HON. MUSHORIWA:  Madam Speaker, I think the Hon. Minister of Finance will be given the chance to respond to these issues that we are raising because they touch in the heart of the Finance Bill. I think it is prudent, because part of the reason why we are in this Parliament, is for debating and I do not have a problem if Members from the other side  can stand up to then say, no what you have been saying is not true and then support by facts ….

         THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER (HON. TSITSI ZHOU): Order, Hon. Mushoriwa, you want to continue with your debate without provoking others? Please do so without having to provoke others.

         HON. MADZIVANYIKA:  On a point of order Madam Speaker.

THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER:  Order, Hon. Madzivanyika. Can we have order in the House. Order Hon. Chokururama, order Hon. Members. Hon. Mushoriwa, please stick to your debate. Avoid being provocative and stick to your debate.

HON. MADZIVANYIKA:  On a point of privilege Madam Speaker.

THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER:  I have already ruled. Hon. Madzivanyika, please take your seat. Hon. Mushoriwa take the floor. Please proceed with your debate. Order, order can we have order in the House. Hon. Members, please take your seats. Hon. Mushoriwa, please take the floor.

         HON. MUSHORIWA: Madam Speaker, the essence of tying up the monitory policy with the fiscal policy is not coming from Jupiter.  The Hon. Minister who is here, the Minister of Finance made undertakings in this august House and it will be a travesty of justice and the people of Dzivarasekwa will not forgive me if I do not raise these issues because they are affecting their day to day lives - [HON. MEMBERS, Hear, hear.]- and the Hon. Minister has to respond. The Finance Bill, in the current state as it is, if you check even from the figures that the Hon. Minister brought in, you actually see that IMTT revenue fell from 16 percent in 2019, that was when it was at the peak to around 3.4 percent in 2024. What does that tell you Madam Speaker? What it tells you is that the economy is actually getting informal day in day out. What is actually happening now in the informal business is that people are demanding cash payment. When they demand cash payment, it means a number of people are no longer paying and contributing tax. The Hon. Minister’s Finance Bill does not talk and give us hope on what the Government intends to do to make sure that they expand the tax base so that people will contribute tax to bring revenue to the fiscus.

Hon. Speaker, when we say this, you then all need to tie it - just look at what has actually happened even to the corporate tax. We increased our corporate tax from 24% to 25% but instead of actually getting more revenue, we have actually been on a decline.  What it means is that even formal business as we are speaking, now if they want to compete with the informal business, they also need to have a side business which run as informal so that they could be in a position to remain in business. We expect the Hon. Minister, in the Finance Bill, to talk about those issues because those are the issues that affect our citizens Madam Speaker.

 I just want to turn into other issues which you will then realise are not being cured by the provisions that are contained in the Finance Bill.  Look at the youth - do you know one of the things that really touches my heart is to understand the challenge that we are facing as a nation.  Most of our youth are now drug addicts primarily because we have not come up with a mechanism of making sure that we take the youth from drugs and we empower them.  The Hon. Minister is aware and if you look into the Finance Bill, we do not see anything that touches on the youth and women in terms of making sure that their lives improve. 

Madam Speaker, coming up with a Bill that does not answer to the question of today, question of now, question of food for the people, is not important.  Madam Speaker, if a Finance Bill is brought before the table and the Finance Bill does not talk to the people in Zimbabwe, then it means that the people in Zimbabwe are actually the menu on the table. They are being eaten by this Finance Bill.  To that extent Madam Speaker, it is my view that this Finance Bill needs to be relooked, needs to be reshaped but most importantly Madam Speaker….

THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER:  Hon. Mushoriwa, you are left with five minutes.

HON. MUSHORIWA:  I wanted then to simply tell you Madam Speaker, that close to 50% of our population is living beyond poverty datum line.   The education sector is gone, the public schools, if you do not have the money to pay extra lessons for your kids, there is no education for the poor person.  The health facilities are gone.  If you do not have money to take your sick patients to private hospital, they will die.  No hope for the poor person and here we are Madam Speaker, the Finance Bill is not speaking to that. 

Lastly, I just want to raise something which I think is also important.  When we pass a budget in this august House, when we spend hours, remember we actually suspend Standing Orders to make sure that we have got time to debate.  What we have noted is that the Hon. Minister, once Parliament has passed the budget, he then starts to implement and do things that have not been allowed by Parliament.  He will choose which Ministry to give more money, the disbursement matrix Madam Speaker, does not even speak to the budget provisions that this august House would have actually approved. 

Madam Speaker, if we continue to do that, we tend to then create a situation where everything that we do is just a question of ticking boxes but we do not want that.  We were elected to be in this august House, we came, and we stand on the shoulders of the thousands of people that voted us.  Those people want to live a life – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.]- We are here and we need the Hon. Minister to simply say, given where we have come from, after the 2008 challenges, after the loss of the RTGs, we cannot afford to have another catastrophe hitting Zimbabwe again.  We cannot afford because many of our people will die Madam Speaker.  This is the reason why I humbly submit that the Finance Bill which the Hon. Minister has actually brought was, one, mistimed, and secondly did not speak the ethos and views that Zimbabweans want. 

I also do not know because as we speak, we are now in the middle of September, very soon we will be going to another budget discussion for 2025.  The transition from 2024 to 2025 is so bad and I do not know whether we are going anywhere.  I thank you Madam Speaker. 

         HON. I. NDUDZO: Thank you Madam Speaker for recognising me.  I firstly want to thank the Hon. Minister for the comprehensive measures that he has brought in terms of the proposed legislation to ameliorate the challenges we are having in our economy and I believe that this Finance Bill deserves our support as the national legislature.  However, allow me Madam Speaker, to comment on some of the provisions that I believe can be improved to ensure that we give efficacy to the good intensions of the Hon. Minister.

Madam Speaker, I will start with clause 3 and 4, which propose a tax free threshold of 12 204 ZiG. In my humble view, Madam Speaker, we may need to have a relook at this figure considering the inflationary pressures that are being exerted on the ZiG and my humble suggestion is that we can deal with this in either of the two ways.  Either we marginally raise the figure or we can attempt to fix the figure in the United States dollars but make sure that at any given point, whenever the ZiG equivalent reaches that point, we have a tax free threshold because if we legislate a particular amount on the ZiG, by the end of the financial cycle, we may not be able to realise much value out of that tax free threshold.

         Madam Speaker, I also want to welcome the proposal by the Hon. Minister to amend section 2, subsection 1 paragraph B, sub paragraph 1 of the Finance Bill, which will now obligate anyone who receives more than 50% of their income in United States dollars to be treated for purposes of taxation as someone who is receiving their income in foreign currency and must be able to pay their taxes in that currency.

         This is important because we do not want a situation where those who are conducting business are actually earning foreign currency, but at the end of the tax period, they are running around to try and dispose of their foreign currency which they may illicitly do on the parallel market, which in itself creates problems for the stability of our currency. The reality is that by and large, most businesses are trading in foreign currency and they must be able to also pay their taxes in that currency and they must be treated as foreign currency earners and our law must reflect that.  So, I rise to appreciate the suggested amendment by the Hon. Minister because it helps us curb the illicit behaviours on the parallel market.   

I also wish to comment on the proposed amendment to section 22 C of the Finance Act which lists various categories of formal businesses indifferent amounts which are being prescribed for purposes of presumptive tax.  In my respectful view, the real issue is not the amounts which the Hon. Minister has considered as appropriate as presumptive tax in respect of each category of those informal businesses.

         Our obtaining reality is that largely, our economy has become informalised and we need to broaden our revenue base by taxing as many of our informal businesses as possible because that is where money is flowing, that is where transactions are happening but we are not receiving the corresponding figures in terms of our tax dues. So my real issue with the Hon. Minister is that we need to support these measures by tightening our enforcement, our monitoring and our collection measure.

         We have so many of our people who are beneficiaries of our progressive indigenisation and empowerment programmes, but they must also pay what is due to Caesar by making a contribution to their tax through their tax and I want to see measures that try and enforce that.  We know the list contains so many of these informal businesses, hair salons, those operating commuter omnibuses and tuckshops and things like that but our reality is that most of these people are not paying tax.

         Madam Speaker, it is not a bad thing for an economy to be dominated by the informal sector.  If you go to other progressive economies such as India, they have grown because they have allowed their informal businesses to thrive but the challenge we have in Zimbabwe is that we have not seen corresponding growth in tax revenue coming also from those informal businesses and that is what we need to address.

         If you juxtapose the provisions of the proposed section 80 A sub section 4 paragraph A, where there is a list of professional businesses who are not allowed to have a renewal of their licences unless they have duly complied with the payments of presumptive tax.  You will see that it is very easy for our revenue authorities to collect from the listed enterprises and professional businesses such as quantity surveyors, engineers, architectures, auditors, accountant and legal practitioners. It is very easy to collect from those provisions, but those are not the people who are making money in this economy.  The money is in traders, the money is in other informal operators and we need to chase our tax where the money is going.

         Madam Speaker, I also want to appreciate the proposed amendment to the Reserve Bank Act.  The proposed amendment by the inclusion of section 44 D subsection 3 of the Reserve Bank Act. I think this is a very important measure for the stabilisation and protection of our local currency the ZiG because this provision is intended to ensure that at all material times, the Reserve Bank is going to be bound to make sure that it prints money which corresponds to the reserves that it has in stock but what is continuously, making from the proposed legislation, Madam Speaker, is what happens when there is breach of that provision. Assuming someone at the Reserve Bank gets overboard in running the printing press and they do not comply with the stated provisions of this proposed amendments, what happens?  In my view, if you say something must be done and you do not provide some punitive measures for breach of that which you have prescribed, you are allowing latitude, you are allowing room for breach and in my view, we must be very clear on the actions that can be taken against the accounting officers or against whoever will be responsible at the RBZ if they print more money than what our reserves can allow at any given point.  So, I want to see what is the punitive measure for the breach of the provision in respect of section 44 D subsection 3.

Similarly, Madam Speaker, I greatly welcome the proposed section 44 D subsection 6 of the Reserve Bank Act coming through this Finance Bill, which I believe needs to be supported by every Member of this National Assembly.  It is intended to read, ‘The tender of payment of ZiG notes and coins shall be legal tender in all transactions alongside any other currency acceptable as legal tender as prescribed under section 44(a).’

So this is a very welcome provision.  However, my point of concern is on the enforcement measures.  What happens as is presently happening in most of the businesses that we have in this country where someone has their ZiG either in hard cash or in electronic form and they want to be able to buy goods that are manufactured in Zimbabwe.  They want to buy those goods and they are turned away or are given some flimsy reason as to why they are not able to buy those goods in ZiG.  Our law must be very comprehensive in terms of the measures – [HON. MEMBERS:  Inaudible interjections.] - Madam Speaker, if you can protect me from the comments, unwelcome and unsolicited, from the Hon. Member seated in that corner.

THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER:  Order Hon. Ndudzo!  Hon. Mushoriwa, I protected you when you were debating.  It is very unfair, [HON. MEMBERS:  Inaudible interjections.] -  Order!  I did not call you to be able to comment.

HON. MUSHORIWA:  Madam Speaker, I did not do anything.  Do you know that I was given five point of orders from this side and Honourables that are this side are very tolerant – [HON. MEMBERS:  Inaudible interjections.] –

THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER:  Order Hon. Mushoriwa!  That does not give you the right to shout when someone is debating.

HON. I. NDUDZO:  Thank you Madam Speaker for the protection you have accorded me.  The point I wish to reiterate Madam Speaker is that, it is well and good if in this august House we pass this important provision of the law which is to the effect that thou shall not reject the ZiG as legal tender in any transaction in Zimbabwe, but the real issue that we need to deal with and we must be able to deal with as a matter of utmost priority is what happens when someone directly or indirectly rejects the ZiG.  There are so many ways our people are cunning and are so crafty.  Often at times they will tell you that we do not have a swipe machine because by and large, we have promoted the use of electronic payments which is very good and important because it enables us to have our tax in every transaction.

         However, you will be told that we do not have swipe machines or even where the swipe machine is there, we are told some flimsy reasons; the battery is dead or there is no power or some reason but that can be a story that can be recycled ad infinitum but ultimately its effect is the rejection of the ZiG.  In my respectful view, we need to have this addressed as a matter of priority.  There is no point in passing a law when you also do not address the adverse consequences of not complying with that law.  So, I want to see those measures in place.  I would be comforted in agreeing with the Minister but if he also tells me what stick he is going to carry to deal with the errant characters and traders in this market.

         Madam Speaker, I want to also make my contribution on the proposed amendment to the provisions of the Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Act.  Firstly, I want to commend the Hon. Minister for expanding the reserved sectors.  Those sectors where only locals, our indigenous people can be allowed to trade and I like the fact; number one, is retail and wholesale, and then there is a whole list of other enterprises which are exclusively reserved for our own entrepreneurs to venture into business.

         My question again comes to the Hon. Minister.  This has not been the issue.  We have not been lacking in prescribing what aught to be exclusively done by Zimbabweans that has not been a point of weakness.  Our point of weakness has always been; what do we do when people stray in into those sectors.  If you go into town, any town including rural growth points such as Hwedza where I come from without mentioning any particular nationalities, you find that we have a lot of foreign traders trading in very basic and simple items in those sectors that are specifically reserved for locals.  What do we do?  I believe that we must be bold enough to come up with appropriate measures to make sure that this does not happen.

         If you go to certain jurisdictions such as China, even if you have a visa to stay and work in China, you are not allowed to drive yourself around in China.  It is something reserved for the locals.  They say if you are making money in this country, employ another Chinese citizen, that is how you create employment.  So, I want also to urge the Hon. Minister to expand this list to include a lot of the other things that we are allowing those who are not locals to partake in. 

         I also want to commend on the proposed section 12 of the first schedule to the Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Act which tries to reserve artisanal mining for locals. The challenge that we have is that in terms of the Mines and Minerals Act itself, we have not particularised and defined what constitutes artisanal mining and what constitutes large scale mining.  As a result, we have many people who are coming and in reality they may be foreign entities who come and present themselves as investors or as people who will be able to make an impact in our economy but in reality, when you look at the revenue that they generate and the manner in which they mechanise their operations, they are actually participating and engaging in artisanal mining. 

I therefore, call up on the Hon. Minister, perhaps with the help of his fellow Minister, the Minister of Mines and Mineral Development, to further look at this and perhaps come up with thresholds  to say if you are a foreign investor in the mining industry and your revenue is at this level, we consider you to be an artisanal miner.  You have to leave that for locals because if you were an investor, you have to bring us big business and you must be able to make a big net contribution to our economy.

         Madam Speaker, I also want to address my views on the proposed amendments to the Money Laundering and Proceeds of Crime Act, particularly the list that the Minister has given us in Section 102 (a) subsection 2 (a-h).  With respect, I believe that there is scope to expand this list.  For example, I always want to believe that Caesar’s wife must always be above reproach.  Yes, we have mentioned all these but we have agencies such as the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission whom we have given a lot of resources as the Legislature to make sure that they combat crime.  I believe the commissioners and officers of...

         THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER:  Hon. Ndudzo, unfortunately, your time is up.

         HON. I. NDUDZO:  Yes, if I am given a minute to wind up.  Just a minute – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjection.] –

         THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: I am going to grant that.

         HON. I. NDUDZO:  I am indebted Madam Speaker.  I also believe we can add those who are overseeing big funds such as the National Social Security Authority Fund because they have got oversight over very big funds.  They are also bigger temptations that come their way.

         HON. MADZIVANYIKA: On a point of order Madam Speaker.

         THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Madzivanyika.

         HON. MADZIVANYIKA:  No, let us follow our laws.  Parliament is a place of rules.  The decision must be according to this book.  We will not accept this one. We will not accept that Madam Speaker.

         THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Hon. Madzivanyika, are you challenging the Chair?

         HON. MADZIVANYIKA:  Let us follow the law.  You should follow this law.

         THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Hon. Madzivanyika, I have not given you the floor to speak.  I did not recognise you.  Take your seat.  Hon. Ndudzo, please wind up.

         HON. I. NDUDZO:  Madam Speaker, the concluding statement was that I think this list must also be extended to deal with all those who want to participate in public tenders.  If you are participating in public tenders, then there must also be a full disclosure of your assets because we do not want to breed people who partake in primitive wealth accumulation through public tenders.  I thank you.

         THE MINISTER OF FINANCE, ECONOMIC AND DEVELOPMENT AND INVESTMENT PROMOTION (HON. PROF. M. NCUBE): I move that the debate do now adjourn.

         Motion put and agreed to.

         Debate to resume: Thursday, 19^th September, 2024.

On the motion of THE MINISTER OF FINANCE, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND INVESTMENT PROMOTION (HON. PROF. M. NCUBE), the House adjourned at Twenty-One Minutes past Six o’clock p.m.