Diaspora Matters

Our eagerly awaited business book is now available. A rich resource book for entrepreneurs in Zimbabwe, it focuses on business opportunities. Where are the opportunities in Zimbabwe as well as across the region? How do we tap into them? What are the skills required to explore them?

Africans have traditionally suffered from not writing own histories and experiences and as a result, we rely on books written elsewhere. A follow up book to our first one we published in 2018, the book covers experiences of our members, researches and tours conducted in Zimbabwe and beyond the borders. There is an addition of important forum contacts dotted across the globe.

Buyers of the book are added to our subscribed list for the year allowing them access to follow up books, resources, video profiling and access to our meetings for presentations and marketing of goods.

It costs USD15/RTGS equivalent and is available at Rokpa Centre, No 34 Quendon Road, Monavale Harare. Contact number +263 773 055 063 or app number +263 774 081808.

Who ever imagined the impact of the Covid-19? That many borders would be closed? How about the crash in world markets? We are talking of trillions of dollars lost due to this epidemic…it will take decades to recover.

To my risk management colleagues, did you see this coming? In your strategic documents, risk registers, did you cover this?

To accountants, when you were coming up with budgets, did you factor in the corona virus impact? Was your scenario analysis perfect?

Actuarial scientists, did your risk modelling factor in possible epidemics that can shut down world markets?

To students of accounting at college, did lecturers cover this? Is it in the syllabus?

I like the World Economic Forum and they captured the top 20 risks in the world. Someone was paid hefty amounts for compiling the list. We are talking of the top risk managers in the world from the best universities. How come they left out the corona virus?

Where is the problem with risk management?

Its mostly a closed profession made up of finance folks…

The finance folks have little knowledge of other sectors such as health, how disease outbreaks can negatively impact social and economic spheres.

Who has been following the locusts doing marathon runs from East Africa towards the Southern Region? Is the profession trekking this? What is the possible financial impact?

In hindsight, perhaps when the virus hit Italy, this was a big red flag but then this was a virus, they spread with lightning speed…

Perhaps it’s a new era of globalisation, we are experiencing an epidemic in a globalised world…we are learning in the process!

Question now is, how reliable is risk management in a globalised world? Unfortunately old practices, knowledge and skills becoming redundant.

A risk management professional now needs to have balanced skills…finance is no longer enough.

You have to read medical journals, engineering too, follow environmental issues and more. Trek problems building up in Paraguay or Taiwan and possible viral impact across the globe.

I cannot even locate the Wuhan Province, had never heard about it but what happened thousands of kilometres away now has a direct impact on us.

In Zimbabwe we need health professionals to work together with risk management professionals-we can no longer rely on one profession for risk mitigation and control. Sadly the culture in Zim is each profession works alone.

The concern is after the corona virus, what next? Is the disease man made? If yes, what stops the manufacturers from celebrating and introducing another deadly one? Do we know enough about this disease?

The year 2020 has started on a positive note for entrepreneurs in Zimbabwe. Our forum is coordinating monthly events where members network, get inspired from business presentations and also get an opportunity to sell their products and services.

We have been encouraging the spirit of supporting our own members and the response to date shows massive responses in support. Call it the awakening of entrepreneurs, if we dont support our own, then noone is going to come from outer space to support us.

We held a highly successful meeting on the 1st of February in Chitungwiza and a record number of members attended.

Another meeting on the 7th of March had a similar attendance. Mobilising 50 members from an online forum is a tall order. Getting 100 a steep mountain climb. When you get more than 200 then you have reached 5 star level.

We had members coming from as far as Bulawayo, Zvishavane, Mhangura, Bindura and Macheke. Our South Africa forum did not disappoint either with a good number attending a meeting at Zoo Lake in Johannesburg.

The good news is that next month, we will form a Business Forum for Women and it promises to be one of the biggest in the capital. Already more than 100 sisters have signed up and numbersmay even surpass 300 in the coming weeks.

They are going to choose their leadership, create a constitution and a strategic document for their operations.

When women work in harmony with a focus on business, the results are always outstanding. So far so good from the initial response and you can follow our Facebook pages for various group links for the forum.

After the launch of our successful Business Opportunities for Zimbabweans book in 2018, we return on the 7th of March 2020 at Capital Gardens with another book covering opportunities but with more depth on researches and analysis.

Our book covers opportunities in Agriculture, Small Businesses, Youths, Women, Digital Marketing and Risk Management. The book has 10 chapters and includes hundreds of voices from our forum of 53.000 members.

A few of the opportunities are covered on this website but the bulk come from our researches, tours, discussions and reviews.

The book is for youths at colleges who rarely cover entrepreneurship especially opportunities-how to identify opportunities, how to harness resources for opportunities and trending developments in the field of 4IR.

We bring once more a chapter on Digital Marketing adding nuggets of wisdom to the area with practical examples of our work in the field.

Without balance, the world is in peril and for most articles we captured, there is feedback from the forum. Some supporting and some providing alternative views. This ensures balance throughout the book.

The bonus is on crucial forum contacts dotted around the region making sure that Zimbabwean entrepreneurs have trusted contacts across the region.

Those who purchase our book automatically gain access to forum benefits for the year such as showcasing businesses at our events, video profiling, access to tours, crowdfunding initiatives and more.

The book is initially available in print copy. We apologise to our diasporan based followers. We took the decision after hundreds of thousands of our first book leaked on social media platforms in 2018.

The estimated cost of the book is USD10 or equivalent in local currency.

The story of African Entrepreneurship can only be told by Africans themselves and we believe we did a superb job in capturing this.

Our Whatsapp Contact Number is +263 774 081 808

There is a wave sweeping across the continent-many people are interested in entrepreneurship. Those employed are not getting enough income, those unemployed are seeking ways of earning an income. The young and old are all interested in venturing into business.

Our forum kick started the concept of monthly meetings every first Saturday of a month and we got encouraging results. An estimated 160 entrepreneurs thronged Leisure Centre in Chitungwiza on the 1st of February. Another meeting in Johannesburg attracted 15 entrepreneurs and this is a great start to 2020.

Why did our members attend the Harare meeting?

Networking platform

Marketing platform for products and services

Raising funding for startups through partnerships and crowdfunding

Being inspired by successful entrepreneurs who had presentations.

Presentations carried out:

Hybrid Paw Paw growing by Garande

Bus Transport Opportunities by Eng Brian Makoyi

Crowdfarming opportunities by Mupamombe

Business oportunities in Beira by Kunsamala

Real estate trends and opportunities by Tatenda

A lot of support for members especially those who brought products for sale. The spirit within the forum to support others is fast rising.

On March 7, 2020, more meetings lined up for

Harare

Bulawayo

Joburg

Capetown and

Gaborone

Bring drinks for bring and share, come prepared to learn and inspire the next person. Its high time Zimbabweans from all walks of life follow in the footsteps of successful entrepreneurship communities such as Indians, Pakistanis, Congolese, Somalis and Nigerians.

When it comes to excelling in education, Zimbabwe ranks amongst the best on the continent. Zimbabwe is rich in human capital but there is one area lacking-entrepreneurship on foreign land!

There are no notable companies formed by Zimbabweans in foreign land-a look at South Africa shows little Zimbabwean influence on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. This is despite the fact that most companies have Zimbabweans driving them at the top.

Our forum would like to challenge Zimbabweans to excel in the next phase-Entrepreneurship!

The time is now to leave a legacy-join hands with like- minded patriots and brainstorm on setting up business ventures. Doing it on your own or harnessing resources with others.

In Harare we have 250 members attending a business meeting at Leisure Centre on the 1^st of February and in Joburg we have a meeting running concurrently with the Zimbabwean one.

About 30 people have signed up for the South African meeting and we believe this is a great start. The meetings will be a monthly event covering many topics and discussions. They will start in Joburg before cascading to the rest of the Rainbow Nation.

A great platform for markets of goods and services, great platform for linking up Zimbabweans in business and creating opportunities for themselves. The Stokvel total value has been put at R50 Billion showing growing interest in harnessing resources for business interests. How about Zimbabweans?

Of course there are issues to do with trust and selfishness but with proper risk management practices, our community can grow and be an active economic player in South Africa, neighbouring SADC countries and Zimbabwe.

All that is needed are a few honest, dedicated and visionary individuals to come together-put their heads on the table and chart an economic course for themselves.

For how long should we continue to be known as people who do not work together? For how long should we be known as the most selfish people on the continent? Hire a Zimbabwean in foreign land? It often results in disaster with a lot of backbiting.

Lets challenge the stereotype Zimbabweans and form a vibrant community with a strong vision to uplift the lives of members and the nation at large.

For addition to the forum, send an app to +27604601692 or +263774081808

Our forum ended the year with a membership of 50, 000 entrepreneurs in Zimbabwe and 74,000 entrepreneurs in South Africa. What a successful year that saw us conducting several meetings, trainings and tours to neighbouring countries.

The icing on the cake was the formation of a Crowdfarming Company called Agri-Volution which is one of the best in the country with access to 40 hectares of farming land and members pooling resources together for farming projects.

Looking forward to the rest of the year, we hope to assist our members with crowdfunding initiatives that enable them to find like minded forum members and forming companies. We did set the ball rolling with our Agri-volution company made up of locals and diasporans.

Our meetings have been well attended and we are upscaling them by holding them on a monthly basis. A great networking event that brings our members from different sectors to inspire others. We have more than 30 Whatsapp groups covering Mining, Agriculture, Poultry, Piggery, Real Estate, Mozambique Opportunities, Malawi Opportunities, Financial Literacy, Digital Marketing, Stock Exchange Investment, Tapestry and more.

Bringing all of the various members under one roof helps to unlock value through networking. Our end of year party attracted more members including some from as far as Bulawayo and diasporans based in Namibia and Mozambique.

You want to get contacts in Mozambique? Experiences in South Africa? Rising entrepreneurs in chemical manufacturing? Successful boer goat farmers? Our forum brings them all together and we share business ideas and business tips.

Our next meeting will be held on the 1^st February at Leisure Centre in Chitungwiza. This is an open door entertainment place which has become a favourite for the forum.

Requirements

Bring 4 drinks, 3 for you and the remainder to give to a forum member of choice. This is how we promote the spirit of entrepreneurship within the forum. Entrance fee paid to the venue owners is US$1 or RTGS equivalent.

Our Agenda includes

• Update on crowdfarming and lessons learnt
• Formation of a crowdfarming company that invests on the stock exchange
• Business Opportunities in Mozambique and crowdfunding avenues-Fadzi
• Business Opportunities in detergents manufacturing presentation by a successful entrepreneur-Nzira
• Business and Law presentation by the forum lawyer-Namatirai
• Digital marketing and E-commerce –Tehila
• Hybrid Paw Paw Opportunities –Garande

Time

2:00pm-5:00pm

We are expecting more than a hundred entrepreneurs to attend. The forum has a culture of selflessly sharing business information on opportunities. We are fortunate to have plenty of successful entrepreneurs with inspiring stories.

So make a date with us, we return once more to Chitungwiza at a relaxed venue-drink, network and share your business story. Identify potential partners and go back having solved access to funding hurdles.

I have travelled several times along the Harare-Bindura Highway and never bothered to enter the Mazowe Boating Club as I knew it as a private club for the white community -mostly farmers.

But last month I stopped to buy fish and noticed high traffic at the area-inquired about entry fees and was told its free for all provided you pay.

So on Christmas Day took my family there and got an insight into the Northern Suburbs Gateway

Activities
1)Boating: Great place for kids with a couple of boats for hire and some vana vevhu towing their boats to the dam…great spectacle.
2) Picnic Area: Bring your braai stand and mind own business-own car music and enjoy
3) Kids Entertainment Zone:Jumping castles, swings, see saw…awesome stuff

Witnessed more than 3000 folks who thronged the place creating a carnival atmosphere. All the inside parking space was filled up and some cars had to park along the highway for more than a kilometre…had never seen anything like this at this place!

Entry is USD5,00 or RTGS equivalent for adults and USD3,00 for kids. It took us 30 minutes to get inside. There are 2 venues…the ordinary and the VIP section…I opted for the ordinary section where most people were creating a Ghetto feel of entertainment..

Very clean bathrooms with Mazowe Hotel providing bar services…bring own drinks or they will charge you twice the average retail prices.

However the drinks ran out..they were ill prepared for the large influx of entertainment seekers.

Small business opportunities:

1) If you had cooler boxes of drinks for sell…chances are high you would have run out of stock and ordered replenishments-not once or twice but thrice!
2) Mr Ice cream? Where were you?
3) Photographers where were you? Drone pilots?

Big business opportunities:
1) Opposite the dam-the area is under developed providing opportunities for expansion, conference centres, casinos, motels etc
2) Did show you marvellous pub restaurants in Beira with ship like designs….bring the concept here and we will have the best pub near Harare. The management of the place need to take a 590km journey from Harare to Beira and check out Club Oceana. Although we left at 6:00pm, most of the folks we left there seemed as if they were probably leaving very late in the evening!
3) Proper beach: There is need for a proper sand beach and swimming pools. They can charge for these extra services and there is ample space for this. Shops selling swimwear have potential too
4) With kids having fun, fathers fishing, what can mothers do? Dont be surprised when hair salons crop up!

To those who have been to resort areas, compare and contrast what you have experienced vs Mazowe Dam…the dam has massive potential.

The risk is in future it may be too small but may help spawn new opportunities in the area.

Unlike Lake Chivero, the water is not heavily polluted.

Its located 50km from Harare and less than 35km for those in the Northern Suburbs. The road is good shape and I also witnessed a Vaya Shuttle Bus. Ndikati iya ko Hararians vange varonga izvi nguvai futi lol

So good guys, Hararians never disappoint, they create plans, they open up new areas.

With the current state of the economy, only a tiny few can afford the luxury of travelling far from the city for holidays. In comes Mazowe Dam and you need to go there to believe it..

Look at its current state and opportunities and then its future potential when the economy picks up and traffic increases 20-30 fold.

Opportunity identification skills are crucial for entrepreneurs as they form part of the stepping stones for starting an entrepreneurial journey. This is an area many struggle with unless one has been exposed to market research experiences-it is further compounded by the  absence of well defined and easily accessible resources on opportunity identification. The starting point in opportunity identification is the mindset ‘is the glass half full or half empty?’ Some simply experience a light bulb moment and others use industry experience to spot opportunities before others do.

The characteristics of people who identify opportunities show that they are generally individuals with optimistic outlooks, inquisitive, commercial curiosity, enjoy questioning assumptions, embrace change, conscious about local environment, have a problem solving mindset, are innovative and enjoy researching. We can also take a leaf from Sir Richard Branson who has a mantra that runs through the DNA of Virgin companies- A-B-C-D. (Always Be Connecting the Dots).

We will explore some of the approaches you can use to identify opportunities;

Problem solving mind-set

The following are the top 10 risks out of the 20 released by the World Economic Forum;

1. Unemployment or underemployment
2. Fiscal crises
3. Failure of national governance
4. Energy price shock
5. Profound social instability
6. Failure of financial mechanism or institution
7. Failure of critical infrastructure
8. Cyber attacks
9. Interstate conflict and
10. Terrorist attacks

The above tie in to factors driving and shaping the future of the world such as technology and innovation, regulation and governance, global economy, trade and investment, natural resources and sustainability, human capital, and consumer expectations.

Zimbabweans can resonate with some of the risks above already playing out in our country.  We are psychologically predisposed to view risks negatively and as such miss most often miss out on opportunities. It’s important to wear risk lenses in order to adequately prepare for risk mitigation but the second question should always be what sort of opportunities lay beyond the risks. Are you willing to take calculated risks and progress through discomfort to get to the finish line? For instance who has moved in to benefit from the 2019 drought season? The answer lies in companies supplying products and services such as irrigation systems, drought resistant crops, solar products and more.

National Budget Analysis

The national budget can be considered a ‘document of opportunities’ for entrepreneurs in any country as it points to the key priorities for the government and the direction it will be allocating resources. Where and how will the nation be spending its resources?

For entrepreneurs, they first look at the big picture of macro-economic analysis and outlook and then secondly place the budget under the microscope and zero in on the expenditure line items. Are there new infrastructure projects coming up in 2020? Construction and engineering companies follow the money and prepare for future tenders. In a stable economy, the salaries bill for civil servants attracts companies offering hire purchase facilities. The donor community usually chips in to plug the gaps in the budget by coming up with own strategies and budgets to complement government’s efforts-entrepreneurs also follow their budget line items. Keep the 2020 National budget and analyse it with ‘’opportunity lenses’

Technological Opportunities

The future is already here with The Fourth Industrial Revolution being topical. The Fourth Industrialisation is a fusion of advances in artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, the Internet of Things (IoT), 3D printing, genetic engineering, quantum computing, and other technologies. It is paving the way for transformative changes in the way we live and radically disrupting almost every business sector.

Africa unfortunately continues to lag behind in terms of technological advancement and this result in the continent being a recipient and consumer of technology. The huge gap between the developed world and Africa is pregnant with opportunities. Early adopters and implementers have a head-start on exploiting opportunities in this sector. Zimbabweans need not look any further when it comes to tech opportunities as this is the sector that produced our first billionaire-Dr Strive Masiyiwa!

 Spending Pattern Review

Zimbabwe is going through challenging political and economic times characterised by skyrocketing prices, high cost of living and hyper inflation. This has prompted many to change their life styles and adapt to the difficult environment. New spending patterns do show the majority focusing on ‘Maslow Hierarchy of Needs’ such as food, accommodation, transport, education and health. Some entrepreneurs simply follow the money and target opportunities on what many are spending money on at a particular point in time.

 Exports and Imports Opportunities

Another approach to look at opportunities in Zimbabwe is to analyse exports and imports and setting up businesses targeting these sectors. Zimbabwe is the 132nd largest export economy in the world according to the Economic Complexity Index (ECI). Zimbabwe’s main exports are tobacco and nickel, diamonds, platinum, ferrochrome, and gold. Zimbabwe main export partners are: South Africa, China, Congo and Botswana. Top fastest-growing exports include cotton, mineral fuels including oil led by coal coke or semi-coke and peat lignite.

Our main imports are motor vehicles and machinery, fertilizers, fuel and foodstuffs with main import partners being South Africa and China. The fastest growing imports include vehicles, miscellaneous chemical goods and plastics. Opportunities abound for new entrants in exports in producing goods or services or bringing disruptive forces. The same applies to imports particularly in the import support sector.

Changes Opportunities

According to Peter Drucker- ‘an entrepreneur always searches for change, responds to it, and exploits it as an opportunity. He viewed change as a vehicle for opportunities whether the change is good news such as unexpected success (good news) or an unexpected failure (bad news). Change in government, demographics, industry, products or government policies all present opportunities for those who can see the gaps and exploit them. Zimbabwe has experienced a record number of new statutory instruments in 2019 with some of them introducing new opportunities. The latest statutory instrument SI 2135 of 2019 which bans the installation of electric geysers on new properties has attracted the attention of companies supplying solar geysers!

Country or Geographical Areas Comparisons

Each country or region has got its own unique ecosystem of opportunities and this depends to a great extent on level of economic development. There are 3 broad stages of economic development starting with the resource based stage, investment driven stage being second and lastly the innovation driven stage. The higher the stage a country is, the easier it is to explore opportunities from countries or regions in the lower ranks.

For Zimbabweans in the diaspora some of the business models they are exposed to can be implemented back home. A lot of benchmarking can be employed in comparing countries or regions and plugging identified gaps.

Value Chain Analysis

Developed by Michael E. Porter, a value chain is a business model that describes the full range of activities needed to create a product or service. For companies that produce goods, a value chain comprises the steps that involve bringing a product from conception to distribution, and everything in between—such as procuring raw materials, manufacturing functions, and marketing activities

It involves various components from inbound logistics, operations, outbound logistics, marketing and service. When viewed from an entrepreneur’s point of view-the value chain provides an over view of opportunities for an individual’s company products and services or the entire market.

In conclusion, there are various ways of identifying opportunities and knowing them helps entrepreneurs to move in when others are fleeing. Opportunity identification is a mindset and what you focus on in your mind and heart is exactly what you will see and experience in the world outside. However be wary of the valley of death that lies between business opportunity identification and a successful business launch – as most business ideas perish before reaching the market place.

The year 2019 has been very eventful particularly on the financial and economics side of things. We have seen the introduction of new statutory instruments in the financial sector, cash shortages, ban on forex trade and now we await the introduction of a new currency whose name remains top secret. These have made running any business a nightmare. Farmers have not been spared and one may even argue that they have been the hardest hit. The biggest challenge comes when one has a sizeable number of employees as is the case on most large commercial farmsas most prefer payment in cash. We all know that cash is hard to come by in Zimbabwe unless you are buying it at a premium on the black market which often tips the farm budget into the red. Farmers have devised a number of ways to try and keep farm operations on track and production at optimum. In this article we shall be looking at some of the way’s farmers are using to cope.

Incentive 0.1 Cash payments

Most rural folk and farm workers to be precise insist on receiving their salaries in hard cash. With the current cash shortage in Zimbabwe it is not sustainable to commit to paying your workforce in cash. The best thing to do is to state from day one that payment will be through electronic means such as eco-cash or bank transfer only. Salaries should be paid every fortnight or once a month and not daily this eliminates casual labourers who are not consistent. I know probably you are thinking I have tried that, and no one turned up, well let’s tackle that in the next section

Incentives 1 (Groceries)

Some farmers have taken advantage of the shortage in basic commodities and have started to give their regular workforce food hampers which often comprises of mealie meal, cooking oil and a bar of soap. This is given on top of their normal wages. One needs to be very careful not to over run the wage billi.e stay within the wage bill budget. Research has shown that the farmer will save up to 1.5% of their normal wage bill if they incentivise this way.

Incentive 2 (Feeds)

Feeding your workers is another good strategy, you can grow your own maize, use it to make maize meal and feed your workers every day, grow vegetables or allocate a certain portion of the vegetables to feed your workers. We all know how hard it is out there for everyone and most of the times people will appreciate a free meal. Again, I will emphasize on keeping it within the budget limits.

Incentive 3 (Crop rejects)

On most farms often there is a certain percentage of reject crop yield which can not be sold. This reject crop can be sold at a very cheap price to recover something from it or simply given to the workers at the end of the shift. However, one needs to be very careful as pilferage tends to be very high when this is done. Reject crop will need to be checked if indeed it is reject grade. Reject crop needs to be weighed to check if the stated weight matches.

Incentive 4 (Work targets)

This is one of my favourites, it needs someone who is good with numbers, Lets use an example. If a worker is paid $5.30 / labour day for picking peppers and the target weight being 30 kg/ labour day which translates to $0.17/kg picked. You can then incentivise this by saying every extra kg picked after picking 30kg of good quality crop (bad quality does not add to days target) the worker is paid $0.30 per kg instead of the $0.17 rate. This will improve the quality of the crop being picked and more work is done within the prescribed time frame.

Incentive 5 (Bonus)

Most farms face this problem whereby casual workers do not pitch up for work when required which often has a huge impact on the job at hand and ultimately profit. One way is to offer a small bonus to those workers who continually come to work when required. This method has worked tremendously on most commercial farms in and around Zimbabwe.

 Incentive 6 (Accommodation)

Very few farms can accommodate all its workers on site and hence most farmers resort to ferrying labour from other places. This usually helps if local labour is not cooperating in terms of cash payments or for any other reason. As time progresses it is worthwhile to provide decent accommodation for your permanent workers on the farm.

Incentive 7 (Timely salary payments)

Pay your labour on time, as promised, if system of payment is going to be changed notify your workers on time. If you can have a proper wage bill management system,the better. I know most are thinking, do I need to have payslips since I only have 10 workers? the answer is yes , not only are you being professional with your 10 workers but you will find that by the time your workforce increases to 50 you will already be having a system in place. Most will runaway from having a paper trails as they avoid paying tax and NSSA but that’s a topic for another day

Article by

Emmanuel D.N Dube (ZIBN Agronomy correspondent)

Emmanuel is a qualified Agronomist with more than a decade’s experience working in the agricultural industry and development sector. You can contact him on edndsep@gmail.com