Zimbabweans can now import various basic commodities that were banned under statutory instrument 22 of 2017 after Government temporarily suspended the legislation to cushion consumers from prevailing shortages.
Minister of Information, Monica Mutsvangwa, yesterday announced that cabinet resolved to shelve the SI until the situation returns to normalcy and companies have capacity to restock.
Commodities include cooking oil, fertilizer, bottled water, wheat flour and roofing sheets amongst other things.
The Government had enacted the SI to protect local industry from cheap imports as industry argued that it had the capacity to supply the local market.
“Following presentation of an updated report by the Minister of Industry and Commerce on the prevailing price situation, cabinet noted with concern that the basic commodities continued to be in short supply despite increased production by suppliers,” Minister Mutsvangwa said.
“The continuing increases in prices, effectively pushes the commodities beyond the reach of many of our people. As a way forward, Cabinet resolved that the Minister of Industry amends statutory instrument 122 of 2017 to allow both companies and individuals with offshore and free funds to import specified basic commodities currently in short supply.”
Over the past weeks, basic commodities have been in short supply and those available were selling for exorbitant prices owing to foreign currency shortages.
The situation worsened after announcement of the latest monetary policy statement, which introduced separate accounts for foreign currency and bond. The USD: Bondnote rate went off the roof on the parallel market where most businesses are believed to have been getting their forex. Businesses began rejecting then surrogate currency insisting on foreign currency to allow them to restock imported products.
