BY MISHMA CHAKANYUKA
GOVERNMENT says it has put in place policies and strategies to promote backward and forward linkages within the business supply chain.
Industry and Commerce minister Nqobizitha Mangaliso Ndlovu said this in a speech read on his behalf at a workshop convened by the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce (ZNCC) in partnership with the Comesa Business Council (CBC).
The workshop was convened to create and establish business linkages between suppliers and buyers within the Comesa region.
“Business’ responsibility to respect stakeholder rights does not depend on the existence of government regulations or its enforcement. However, achieving meaningful outcomes to meet this responsibility also requires that governments address governance gaps with regard to global business operations that allow human and environmental tragedies to occur and create an uneven playing field, responsible and irresponsible businesses,” Ndlovu said.
“In view of the above prognosis, the Zimbabwe government has put in place policies and strategies to create an enabling environment to promote backward and forward linkages within the supply chain, which must be nurtured to build these strategic relationships among players.”
Ndlovu said a joint action between businesses and the government was important in order to achieve vision 2030, in particular given the key role of the private sector.
The buyer-seller platform was created to establish business relationships between suppliers and buyers. It was also created to be used as a tool for buyers to outline all the guidelines that are needed for small-to-medium enterprises to access their markets.
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The buyer-seller platform was running under the theme Promoting Efficient and Sustainable Local Supply Chain Systems. It started on Tuesday, but was officially opened yesterday.
It comes as the second phase of the local sourcing for partnership (LSP) workshop begins. An LSP training and capacity-building workshop on food safety and standards was held in June 2019.
Ndlovu said the buyer-seller platform will also aid in building small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs’) competitiveness in both local and regional markets.
