LATEST: Zim govnt gives foreign firms 1 April deadline

GOVERNMENT OF ZIMBABWE has given all foreign owned firms  1 April deadline to relinquish some shares of their business to locals in line with indigenisation laws.

Those who fail to do so by the end of this month will have their business licenses cancelled.

The move will affect companies operating in sensitive industries such as tourism, mining, banking and manufacturing.

Addressing  journalists in Harare today, Economic Empowerment Minister Patrick Zhuwao said Cabinet on Tuesday unanimously passed a resolution directing that from April 1 this year all line ministries proceed to issue orders to cancel licences of non-compliant businesses within their respective sectors of the economy.

Zhuwao said that failure to comply with the law is a direct challenge to President Robert Mugabe.

“Businesses have continued to disregard Zimbabwe’s laws as if daring our President to do something about their contemptuous behaviour,” he said.

Critics fear that such laws if not done properly will throw Zimbabwe back to stone age.

Just by coincidence 1 April is Fools Day!