Ncube Targets Competitiveness with Licensing Overhaul

Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube has delivered on his promise to simplify Zimbabwe’s complex and costly licensing framework, a move he was personally motivated to pursue after witnessing the hurdles his wife encountered when opening a restaurant in Bulawayo last year.

For a long time, businesses have criticised the licensing system for being duplicative and expensive, with operators required to secure different permits for services offered under one roof. For instance, a supermarket has to apply separately for bakery, butchery, liquor, and restaurant licences to operate fully.

Speaking at the Women’s Prosperity Conference last year, Ncube revealed how his wife had presented him with a lengthy list of licences she was compelled to pay for before starting her restaurant, describing the system as excessive and unsustainable. At the time, he pledged swift reforms.

On Wednesday, the minister unveiled a package of measures aimed at lowering business costs and boosting the country’s competitiveness.

Among the changes, the US$500 registration fee for small-scale farmers has been scrapped, while the annual US$350 dairy processor registration has been reduced to a once-off US$50. Feed manufacturing registration has dropped from US$250 to US$20, and livestock movement clearance has been halved from US$10 to US$5 per herd.

The cost of a livestock genetics import permit has been cut from US$100 to US$20, while meat export registration fees have been slashed from US$500 to US$100.

Additional reforms include the removal of food handler certificate fees, capping Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) charges at 0.05% of a project’s value (with a maximum of US$100,000), and scrapping levies such as the Agricultural Marketing Authority (AMA) livestock levy, the biosafety permit, and the CBCA certificate.

“These changes demonstrate government’s determination to make it easier and more affordable to do business in Zimbabwe while enhancing competitiveness,” Ncube said.