The Minister of Industry and Commerce Hon. Nqobizitha Mangaliso Ndhlovu rallied companies in the manufacturing sector to produce local brands and propel the Buy Zimbabwe Campaign to greater heights.

Speaking during the ZimBrands Awards, a brain child of the Buy Zimbabwe Campaign, Minister Ndhlovu said in a speech read on his behalf by the Permanent Secretary Dr.T.U. Wushe that, “The Government through the Ministry of Industry and Commerce is advocating for the production and consumption of locally made products in order to stimulate the economy towards Vision 2030”.

“I am proud to see the impact of local brands on our economy,” he said.

Minister Ndhlovu added that the ZimBrands Awards do not honour excellence in local production alone but also reinforce Zimbabwe’s commitment to build a resilient economy through home-grown initiatives.

Minister Ndhlovu reiterated that such brilliant initiatives foster the localisation of value chains, which puts the economy at an advantage by growing the economy and creating jobs.

Turning to the smuggling and the proliferation of counterfeit products on the market, Minister Ndhlovu assured Industry that Government remains committed to addressing the concerns of local producers by in combating smuggling and counterfeit goods that threaten the integrity of the market.

The Ministry of Industry and Commerce is the Chair of the Taskforce on Business Malpractice and is currently overseeing a two pronged approach on anti-smuggling and anti-counterfeit that involves education-awareness campaigns and enforcing compliance through a whole of government agencies approach.

Minister Ndhlovu also spoke about the effect of having a stable exchange rate. He said,
“I am pleased to report that the recent liberalisation of the exchange rate has provided the much-needed lifeline for our retailers and wholesalers, enabling them to navigate the challenges posed by past disparities in the exchange rates which made the pricing of their goods such a daunting task!”.

The Awards lived up to expectation, with some walking back to the office as winners whilst some went back to the drawing board to fill the gaps. Above all, the competition in all categories was stiff as all the nominated companies are playing a huge role in growing the economy in the manufacturing sector.

National Foods Limited, which recently commissioned three pasta, biscuits, and cereal plants, walked away with heads held high after scooping the leading Mealie Meal Brand Award through Parlenta

They also took the Leading Fast Moving Consumer Goods Award, leading Snacks Brand through King Kurls and leading Baking Products Brand through Gloria Flour.

Zimplow walked away with the Leading Local Brands in agricultural equipment production whilst the Leading Local Brands in Chemical and Fertiliser Production went to the Zimbabwe Fertilizer Company ZFC.

Minining Conglomerate Zimplats won the Mining Company Supporting
Local Business. Meanwhile, the Leading Biscuits Brands Award went to Proton, the Marondera based bread and biscuit manufacturing giant. The Animal Feed Manufacturing sector went to Profeeeds, who battled it out with Feedmix and others. Zimgold were not to be outshined as they scooped the LEADING Cooking Oil Brands Award.

Nestle Zimbabwe took to the podium with the Leading Cereal Brands through Cerevita. Nestlé Zimbabwe recently commissioned a US7 million Roller Dryer, adding another milestone to their gallery.

The Leading Detergents Brands went to Trade King’s through Boom.

Chibuku Breweries took pole position in the Leading Sorghum Alcoholic Brand through the popular Super outpacing Scud and Nyathi.

Schweeppes walked away with an award for Mazoe Orange Crush.

Edgars took the Leading Clothing and Textile Brands Awards out matching Jet and Waverly Blankets, respectively.

The winners marked their territory as bigger brands and will enjoy the limelight until the next ZimBrands Awards.

Minister Ndhlovu congratulated all the winners and thanked them for the hard work. He urged those who wish to win to scale up their efforts as we all work to build the economy towards a prosperous upper middle income society by 2030.

The full list of winners and runners up can be accessed on the Ministry of Industry and Commerce website www.mic.gov.zw