HARARE – Amid an influx of foreign nationals setting up businesses across Zimbabwe’s economy, government has moved to introduce a new policy framework aimed at segmenting and protecting sectors reserved for locals, according to Information and Publicty Ministry Permanent Secretary Nick Mangwana.
The move comes as pressure mounts from citizens and business associations who argue that foreign competition — particularly from Chinese, Nigerian, Rwandan and Congolese entrepreneurs — is crowding out local operators in retail, small-scale mining, and manufacturing.
At the heart of the debate is Zimbabwe’s long-standing Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Act, which provides for certain sectors to be reserved exclusively for locals. However, implementation has been patchy, with critics accusing government of failing to enforce its own policies.
In Harare’s Mbare Musika and city centre, Nigerian and Congolese nationals dominate tuckshops and car-parts markets. Nigerian traders, in particular, have become major players in the spare-parts industry, where cheap but substandard components have been linked to road accidents.
“We are seeing lives being lost because of fake spare parts flooding the market. This is an area that must be ring-fenced for locals, both for economic and safety reasons,” a local youth leader told The Zimbabwe Mail.
Similar concerns have been raised in small-scale mining, traditionally a sector reserved for locals but now penetrated by Chinese operators engaging in alluvial gold panning. Analysts say this has displaced indigenous miners while creating environmental hazards.
“Why is brick-making or small-scale mining open to foreign investors when it was specifically meant for community empowerment? Government is turning a blind eye while ordinary citizens are being pushed out of business,” said an official from the Zimbabwe Chamber of Informal Economy Associations (ZCIEA).
The textile industry is also under siege, with Asian traders allegedly smuggling cheap garments from Bangladesh and other Asian markets, undermining Zimbabwe’s efforts to revive its collapsed textile ecosystem.
In wholesale and retail, local entrepreneurs complain about unfair competition from Chinese and Indian traders, who are accused of leveraging financial muscle and political connections to secure prime retail spaces.
While government insists foreign direct investment (FDI) is critical for economic recovery, critics argue that “protectionism” is equally necessary to shield vulnerable local sectors. They point to examples in South Africa, where pressure groups like Operation Dudula have called for stricter enforcement of laws to protect citizens from foreign dominance in informal markets.
“What locals want is not the elimination of foreign investment altogether, but a clear and enforced separation of sectors,” said an economist at a Harare think tank. “High-level industries such as manufacturing, infrastructure and energy can remain open to foreign capital, but small retail, artisanal mining and community-level industries should be preserved for Zimbabweans.”
Business lobby groups are urging government to cut red tape and provide financial support for locals to thrive in reserved sectors. Without this, they warn, protectionist laws will remain on paper while foreigners continue to dominate at the grassroots level of Zimbabwe’s economy.
