By A Correspondent| Rampant smuggling of cheap imports including blankets at the country’s ports of entry is threatening the revival of local companies who have in the past few years recorded a steady rise in industrial capacity.

Confederations of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI) recently boasted that local industrial capacity had for the first time in over two decades gone above 50 percent but this is now being threatened by rampant smuggling that has seen over 150 000 being arrested at all ports of entry into Zimbabwe since January 2021.

Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) chairperson Justice Loice Matanda-Moyo has previously told the media that Zimbabwe was losing billions annually to smuggling while bemoaning rampant corruption at the ports of entry.
“We are investigating the Zimra officials and the law enforcement agents at the borders to find out how those buses are actually bypassing the regulations at the border. In some of the buses, you find out that it is only the driver and the conductor, there are no passengers in there. It is now the buses being used to carry contraband into South Africa,” she said.
Matanda Moyo’s remarks followed the impounding of nine buses after they were found with various items imported from South Africa including blankets and groceries.

Confederation of Zimbabwe Retailers (CZR) President Denford Mutashu also complained over corruption at the ports of entry saying it is threatening the country’s economic revival efforts.
Mutashu called for an inter-ministerial task force to look into rampant smuggling of cheap imports into the country.

“The growing informalisation has also necessitated smuggling by providing a safe haven locally. Government should set up an interministerial task force comprising various departments from industry, commerce and private sector players,” he said.

One of the biggest blankets manufacturers, Waverley Blankets is concerned that if untamed, smuggling could scuttle their revival efforts.

A Waverley Blankets representative Raymond Huni, previously told a CZI meeting that, smuggling was hurting their operations as they could not compete with smuggled blankets brought into the country as they were competing on an uneven playing field.

At one time Zimra was approached to engage people form the textile industry to monitor the borders, as textile industry believes that with their expert knowledge, they can better detect the various textile products being smuggled into the country. Textile industries though their body ZITMA are still waiting for a response to their request.

“It (smuggling) is killing our business. Right now, at Waverley Blankets, we could employ over 2 000 people but currently we have just over 1200 employees. The winter season, which is our peak period, is not going as well as we thought it was going to be. This is due to unfair competition from smugglers and those not fiscalised, selling only in foreign currency so that they can avoid declaring their sales to Zimra and avoid adding VAT to their price. This enables them to sell at a cheaper price.” Huni said.