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Clarity of vision, prerequisite to success

Zimbabwe needs a new economic mandate in order to be productive and successful, says Shingi Mutasa, T A Holdings chief executive

A clear vision is a key prerequisite for success said local businessman and entrepreneur,
Shingi Mutasa. Mutasa, the chief executive of T A Holdings, was presenting a paper entitled, “Challenges and opportunities in Zimbabwe’s macro-economic environment”, as part of the Faculty of Management and Administration’s annual honours lecture series.
In his presentation, Mutasa compared the economic collapse of Zimbabwe and that of other countries in the region that have
experienced civil war, citing Cote D’Ivoire, which had its economy shed 7% of its GDP between 1999-2003; Sierra Leone’s loss of 30% of GDP between 1996-2002, and the Democratic Republic of Congo’s loss of 19% of GDP.
“However Zimbabwe’s collapse by 44% of its GDP, in the absence of any war, has left us with no justifiable reason as to why this should happen. What could possibly create the collapse of this country?” posed Mutasa. He cited various dynamics at play in Zimbabwe’s collapse, which he likened tto “the perfect storm” “Sanctions imposed on this country since
1997 in the financial, tourism and other sectors and poor monetary policies have been the cause of economic meltdown in
Zimbabwe,” Mutasa said. But he was optimistic that are abundant opportunities for the peoples of Zimbabwe to regain their status and confidence as the jewel of Africa.
“The greatest opportunity lies in our DNA,” said Mutasa. “The fabric of our society and the incredible discipline that the
Zimbabwean people have built up over years and generations has created a breed of hard working and law abiding citizens whose desire is for education and prosperity. Ten years of economic collapse has failed to destroy this and that in itself becomes an incredible opportunity for Zimbabweans at this moment.”
Mutasa also highlighted Zimbabwe’s comparatively superior human capital base as a key asset. “Zimbabwe has excellent
human capital growth and from a development perspective, we fare better than most of our neighbours such as Mozambique and Malawi,” he said. “Africa University will bring about excellence in human intellectual growth and entrepreneurs, myself included, are the ones with the responsibility to provide capital and other necessary conditions in order to tap into
this great human resource and ultimately develop Africa,” said Mutasa.
Mutasa’s company, T A Holdings, is expanding its operations in the region and on the look-out for well-trained personnel
with the right mindset. He complimented Africa University for the compulsory second language acquisition component in its
curriculum, noting that it produces “ the type of intellectual capital that companies with a regional and global outlook are looking for, and because of this component in its curriculum, Africa University becomes a prime catchment area for African emerging businesses with a pan African and global outlook.”
On the question of Zimbabwe’s current situation, Mutasa was of the view that change is imminent. “Since independence, Zimbabwe has been driven by a social and political mandate, given our history of colonization and the resultant policies that discriminated against the black majority,” said Mutasa. “At independence, government had to redress
these anomalies. But in the next 50 years, we need an economic mandate in order for this country to be productive and successful.”
Mutasa believes the some of Zimbabwe’s current economic challenges are a result of the lack of a clear and committed vision. “Vision is what drives economies,” said Mutasa. “However, right now, we do not have a vision, which all of us can believe and share in, and this makes it difficult to institute and execute policies for the economic revival of this country,” he said. FMA’s honours lecture series allows students to learn from the experiences and ideas of leading professionals, government officials and businesspeople.