The document discusses the Dutch ambassador to Zimbabwe stating that the Netherlands is heavily involved with the Zimbabwe Investment Authority and ZimTrade to boost investment and trade ties between the two countries. The ambassador notes that the Netherlands is focusing on areas like agriculture, tourism, and water services that can provide opportunities for Dutch companies to partner with Zimbabwean firms. The ambassador hopes this will lead to more direct investment from Dutch companies in Zimbabwe.

1. By Tawanda Musarurwa
HARARE – Netherlands says
it is heavily involved with
the Zimbabwe Investment
Authority (ZIA) and ZimTrade
to boost its investment and
trade ties with Zimbabwe.
The Dutch ambassador to
Zimbabwe Ms Gera Sneller
said her country is target-
ing areas that can provide a
niche for Dutch firms.
“At the moment we are
also focusing very much on
economic co-operation. We
are working with organisa-
tions such as ZimTrade and
the Zimbabwe Investment
Authority (ZIA) and Dutch
companies to try and see
if we can create win-win
situations and enhance our
economic relations.
“And we do that in areas spe-
cifically where we feel there
is a niche for Dutch compa-
nies for instance agriculture,
but also tourism, the services
sector and water,” she said in
an interview last week.
On Dutch investment in
Zimbabwe she said: “That’s
a little hard to count because
most of the Dutch firms tend
to be owned by Dutch people
who have been here for a
very long time so they are
considered Zimbabwean and
those Dutch companies that
come tend to get Zimba-
bwean partners and so to call
them Dutch we don’t register
them that way.
“But we are hoping that
they will be some true Dutch
companies coming here that
will then work with Zimba-
bwean firms, for instance in
News Update as @ 1530 hours, Tuesday 03 May 2016
Feedback: bh24admin@zimpapers.co.zwEmail: bh24feedback@zimpapers.co.zw
Netherlands engaging ZIA, ZimTrade on investment, trade
Ms Gera Sneller

2. agri-business and then we
might be able to start count-
ing them.”
Trade between the two coun-
tries is largely dominated by
horticultural products, with
Zimbabwe accruing €35,1
million ($40, 6 million) from
exports of its horticultural
products to the Netherlands
last year, marginally up from
€34,2 million ($39, 6 million)
in 2014.
Meanwhile, Ambassador
Sneller said the Netherlands
was in full support of the
Zimbabwe’s re-engagement
efforts with the European
Union (EU).
The EU is currently Zimba-
bwe's third major trading
partner.
“As a founding member of
the EU we are part of that
re-engagement agenda, but
I must say I do not like the
word re-engagement because
it makes it seem as if the
EU abandoned Zimbabwe at
a certain time, but that was
never the case.
“The EU as an entity, but also
the individual member states
were and still are the largest
donors in this country and
we have been working with
the people of Zimbabwe even
though our political relation-
ship was a little bit difficult.
“I think is important that
countries keep on talk-
ing to each other and that
when there are differences
in opinion that we sit down
and discuss them and we are
hoping very much that the
Government of Zimbabwe
will continue with its reform
agenda both in the economic
and political spheres
“Zimbabwe has a beauti-
ful Constitution, the 2013
Constitution that contains a
strong Bill of Rights and we
are ready to help the Govern-
ment of Zimbabwe implement
the Constitution because
there is a lot of work to be
done with regards to align-
ment and constitutionalism.
Following the Global Political
Agreement and the Govern-
ment of National Unity in
2009, and to the adoption of
the new Constitution in 2013
by Zimbabwe, the EU took
steps towards improving rela-
tions with Zimbabwe.
On November 2014, the EU
did not renew its sanctions
(or what it termed “appro-
priate measures”) that it
imposed in 2002, thus allow-
ing a multi-year cooperation
with Zimbabwe under the
11th European Development
Fund.
This resulted in a €234
million National Indicative
Programme for the period
2014-2020 being signed in
February last year.
But earlier this February, the
Council of the EU adopted a
decision extending its other
form of sanctions against
Zimbabwe – the so-called
“restrictive measures” - until
February 20, 2017.●
2 news

3. BH243

4. BH24
TAA:DI251386-Y22
4

5. By Funny Hudzerema
HARARE-The African Capac-
ity Building Foundation
(ACBF) has developed a five-
year strategic plan for the
development of African coun-
tries to help them to meet
the African Agenda 2063.
Speaking during the ACBF
25th anniversary celebra-
tions ACBF executive sec-
retary Professor Emmanuel
Nnadozie said the new plan
will address issues of tech-
nical gaps which African
countries are experiencing at
the moment.
“African universities are fall-
ing to focus on critical things
which are essential towards
achieving developmental
goals.
“Going forward ACBF has
finalised the strategic plan
for 2017-2021 strategy which
is our next five years strat-
egy towards achieving Afri-
can Agenda 2063,” he said.
The ACBF was established
by African governments,
bilateral and multilateral
partners, in response to the
continent’s capacity problems
and its key areas include the
promotion of transparency
and accountability in public
sector management and the
ownership of developmental
processes at national level.
“This strategy focuses on
specific things which are
needed for Africa to develop
which will address gaps Afri-
can countries’ gaps.
“We want to skill up what we
are doing in African universi-
ties to skill up the production
of engineers, mathematics
and science subjects which
is called the STEM to really
make much massive invest-
ments on that.” he said.
He added that the plan will
pay attention on soft skills or
soft capacity within African
countries which have been
ignored and we have noticed
that they are critical for
Africa to move forward.
Statics indicated that in
terms of agriculture scien-
tists and researchers Africa
has a current projected
gap of 1,6 million, while in
engineering sector the gap is
7,4 million and this indicated
that the continent is relying
on foreign expects in those
sectors.
Mr Nnadozie added that
development is not a diffi-
cult issue but it’s a matter of
managing technical issues.
“In our new strategic plan we
got four pillars which include
enabling the effective imple-
mentation of continental
development environment.
“The second one is support-
ing countries to achieve tan-
gible developmental results
that are how we can reduce
poverty in a nation and eco-
nomic growth,” he said.
He added that the third pillar
is enhancing private sector
and civil society contribution
to sustainable development
and leveraging knowledge for
sustainable development.●
5 news
ACBF finalises new 5-year strategic plan

6. BH246

7. BH247

8. By Tawanda Musarurwa
HARARE -The International
Monetary Fund (IMF) has pro-
jected that Zimbabwe’s eco-
nomic growth will be at least
0,5 percent lower due to the
effects of the El Nino-induced
drought.
In the 2016 National Budget,
Finance and Economic Devel-
opment Minister Patrick Chi-
namasa projected Zimbabwe’s
2016 economic growth at 2,7
percent, while the World Bank
in its ‘Global Economic Pros-
pects’ forecasted a 2,8 percent
increase in the country’s gross
domestic product (GDP).
Said the IMF in its latest
‘Regional Economic Outlook for
Sub-Saharan Africa: Time for
a policy reset’ on the effect of
the drought in the Southern
Africa region:
“IMF staff project that in 2016
GDP growth will be signifi-
cantly impacted in Ethiopia,
and decline by 2, 3 percent in
Malawi mainly because of poor
agricultural output. In addition
to its impact on agriculture,
the drought has severely crip-
pled the supply of water and
the production of electricity.
“A number of reservoirs are
almost entirely dried up or at
very low levels, and the lack
of water is affecting electric-
ity production, in particular
in Zambia (lowering growth
by 1, 2 percentage points)
and Zimbabwe, where pro-
longed power outages have
become the norm. In most of
the other affected countries in
the sub-region, the drought is
estimated to reduce growth by
up to 0, 5 percentage point.”
More broadly, the IMF esti-
mates that 2016 economic
growth for the entire Sub-Sa-
haran Africa will be lower at 3
percent from 3, 4 percent in
2015.
“We project growth to be still
lower at 3 percent as many
countries grapple with the
more difficult external envi-
ronment. Beyond that, drought
(particularly in eastern and
southern Africa) is set to be
an added source of economic
difficulties for several coun-
tries,” said the IMF.
And the Bretton-Woods institu-
tion has urged African coun-
tries to review their economic
policies in light of a sharp
decline in commodity prices.
“Given the substantially
tighter external financing
environment, market access
countries in which fiscal and
current account deficits have
been elevated over the last
few years will also need to
recalibrate their fiscal policies.
Such recalibration would help
them to rebuild scarce buffers
and mitigate vulnerabilities
if external conditions worsen
further,” said Ms Antoinette
Sayeh, director of the IMF’s
African Department.●
Zim 2016 GDP growth could be weaker on El Nino drought
8 news

9. BH249

10. BH2410

11. BH24 Reporter
HARARE-Zimbabwe has so
far exported 41,2 million
kilogrammes worth $241mil-
lion of flue cured tobacco
since January this year,
Tobacco Industry Marketing
Board (TIMB) statistics show.
As at April 27 the average
export price was $5,87per kg
which is slightly lower than
last year’s average price of
$6,28.
The golden leaf is imported
by 37 countries across the
world including China, South
Africa, Indonesia, Belgium
and Russia.
China is still the leading
buyer of local tobacco after
it imported 20,2 million
kg worth $163,8 million at
$8,11 per kg.
During the same period last
year, China had imported 19
million kg of tobacco valued
at $168 million.
South African is in second
position after importing 7,7
million kg of tobacco worth
$24 million at an average
price of $3,12 per kg.
Meanwhile at least 77 235
growers have so far regis-
tered this year, which is a
decrease of 19 percent from
95 515 growers that had
registered during the same
period last year.
Of the 77 235, 4 004 are new
growers from Mashonaland
West compared to 6 506 who
had registered during the
same period last year.
Mashonaland Central has 3
865 new farmers, a decline
from 4 785 last year, Masho-
naland East has 867 farm-
ers a decline from the 3 103
who had registered during
the same period last year.
The number of new growers
also declined in Midlands
which registered 106 growers
compared to 208 last year,
Masvingo has 29 compared
to 172 while Matabeleland
has two farmers compared to
eight last year.●
11 news
Tobacco exports top $240 million

12. BH2412

13. BH2413

14. HARARE -The local equi-
ties market closed the week
without a single dip, post-
ing its eighth consecutive
gain today to gain 6.51 on a
week-on-week basis.
The mainstream indus-
trial index added 3.04 to
close the week at 105.79
as s BAT was up by a sig-
nificant $0,9524 to close
at $11,7524, while bever-
ages giant Delta shifted up
$0,0475 to $0,7000 and
giant retailer OK Zimbabwe
advanced by $0,0039 to
trade at $0,0450.
Conglomerate Innscor
was $0,0012 stronger at
$0,2200.
Two counters traded in the
negative as Hippo shed
$0,0150 to $0,2200 while
giant insurer Old Mutual
closed at $2,2000 after a
$0,0026 loss.
The mining index was flat
at 20.16 as Bindura, Fal-
gold, Hwange and RioZim all
maintained previous price
levels at $0,0102, $0,0050,
$0,0300 and $0,1100,
respectively.
Week-on-week, the mining
index was unchanged
- BH24 Reporter ●
ZSE14
Equities market close week on a high

15. Movers CHANGE Today Price USc SHAKERS Change TODAY Price USc
Innscor 2.27 22.50 Hippo -8.86 20.05
BAT 0.40 1,180.00 Mashonaland -1.19 1.65
Delta 0.35 70.25 Dawn Properties -0.62 1.60
Index Previous Today Move Change
Industrial 105.79 105.88 +0.09 points +0.09%
Mining 20.16 20.16 +0.00 points +0.00%
15 zse tables
ZSE
Indices
Stock Exchange
Previous
today

16. 16 DIARY OF EVENTS
The black arrow indicate level of load shedding across the country.
POWER GENERATION STATS
Gen Station
03 May 2016
Energy
(Megawatts)
Hwange 538 MW
Kariba 177 MW
Harare 19 MW
Munyati 19 MW
Bulawayo 29 MW
Imports 0 - 400 MW
Total 1079 MW
• African Sun EGM, Holiday Inn, 09 May, 1400hrs,
• Innscor EGM, Royal Golf Club, 10 May, 0900hrs
• 05 May - Barclays Bank of Zimbabwe AGM; Place: Meikles Mirabelle Room; Time: 1500hrs• 18 May - ZB Building Society
AGM; Place: 21 Natal Road, Avondale, Harare; Time: 12:00hrs
• 18 May - The 76th AGM of Astra Industries Limited; Place: Auditorium at Astra Park, Corner Ridgeway North/Northend
Roads, Highlands, Harare; Time: 12:00hrs
• 19 May - The Fifth Annual General Meeting of Padenga Holdings Limited; Place: Royal Harare Golf Club, 5th Street exten-
sion, Harare; Time: 08.15am
• 19 May - NMBZ AGM; Place: Unity Court, Corner 1st Street Kwame Nkrumah Avenue; Time: 10:00am
• 19 May - Turnall Holdings AGM; Place: Jacaranda Room, Rainbow Towers; Time: 12:00
THE BH24 DIARY

17. JOHANNESBURG - South
Africa's rand firmed slightly
against the dollar early
on Tuesday, edging back
towards five-month highs hit
on Friday as investors posi-
tioned for a slew of domestic
and foreign economic data.
At 0645 GMT, the rand traded
at 14,2550 versus the dollar,
up 0,18 percent from Mon-
day's New York close.
The rand hit 14,1165 on
Friday, its strongest since
November 25, lifted by a
broadly weaker dollar, strong
trade data and a court ruling
against scandal-beset Presi-
dent Jacob Zuma.
Rand Merchant Bank analyst
Isaah Mhlanga said markets
were focusing on upcoming
data, including the manufac-
turing Purchasing Managers
Index (PMI) and vehicle sales
figures for April at home,
as well as US trade, durable
goods orders, services PMI
and non-farm payroll num-
ber.
"Across the Atlantic, this
week's data is the first to
provide an indication as
to the direction the Fed's
interest rate policy will take
come June," Mhlanga said in
a note.
South African stocks were
set to open higher at 0700
GMT, with the JSE securities
exchange's Top-40 futures
index up 0,44 percent.
In fixed income, the yield for
the benchmark bond due in
2026 was up 1.5 basis points
to 8,99 percent.
- Reuters.●
regioNAL News17
Rand firmer, stocks set to open higher

18. After three years of being
scorned, gold’s making a
powerful comeback. Prices
have pushed above $1 300
an ounce on speculation that
the US central bank will be
slow to tighten policy fur-
ther, bolstering the metal’s
appeal as the dollar sagged.
Bullion for immediate deliv-
ery traded at $1 290,28
an ounce at 2:04 p.m. in
Singapore from $1 291,55
on Monday, when it rose
to $1 303,82, according to
Bloomberg generic pricing.
It’s gained 22 percent this
year, rising to the highest
since January 2015, as a
gauge of the dollar lost 6.3
percent.
Investors have piled back
into bullion in 2016 after
prices sank for three straight
years as risks to the global
economy prompted the
Federal Reserve to signal it
will take a slower approach
to rate increases. While
the metal’s appeal has also
been boosted by the spread
of negative interest rates
in Europe and Japan, gold’s
latest push higher came after
the Bank of Japan refrained
from adding stimulus last
week, which hurt the dol-
lar. The spike above $1 300
on Monday came as many
financial markets in Asia and
Europe were closed.
“The shock of BoJ’s surprise
inactivity late last week is
still lingering, with investors
seeking haven in the gold
market,” said Daniel Hynes,
senior commodity strategist
at Australia & New Zealand
Banking Group Ltd. “Expec-
tations of no imminent rate
rise in the US is keeping
investor demand strong.”
ETPs Swell
Investors have poured
funds into bullion-backed
exchange-traded products,
reversing a tide that saw
assets shrink for three years.
Holdings rose 21,6 met-
ric tons to 1 780,7 tons on
Monday, the highest since
December 2013, according to
data compiled by Bloomberg.
They’re up 22 percent this
year.
Some forecasters have said
the rally may last a while
longer. Gold may rise to as
much as $1 400, BNP Paribas
SA said last month. ABN
Amro Group NV -- which
began the year as a gold
bear only to reverse its out-
look -- in March boosted its
year-end target to $1 370 on
expectations for low rates.
Gold’s advance has fueled
a rally in related equities.
Newcrest Mining Ltd., Aus-
tralia’s biggest producer, has
jumped 54 percent in Sydney
this year. In Hong Kong, Zijin
Mining Group Co. has surged
27 percent after rising as
much as 3,5 percent on
Tuesday.
Rates Outlook
The likelihood of higher US
rates by year-end is 59,8
percent, down from 93,3 per-
cent in January, futures data
show. The future so-called
new normal for interest rates
might be lower than the
Fed’s median estimate, San
Francisco Federal Reserve
President John Williams said
at a conference on Monday.
The US expanded just 0,5
percent in the first quar-
ter, the slowest pace in two
years. This week, the release
of monthly employment fig-
ures will provide clues on the
strength of the world’s big-
gest economy and help shape
the outlook for US monetary
policy.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is
among forecasters that have
stuck to a bearish outlook, at
least as of April 22. The New
York-based bank said in a
note that day it still expects
a further strengthening of
the US labor market will
force the Fed to hike, hurting
gold. It saw prices at $1
100 in three months’ time. –
Bloomberg●
internatioNAL News18
Gold crosses $1,300 threshold as rates outlook undermines dollar

19. By Nouriel Roubini
The International Mone-
tary Fund and others have
recently revised down their
forecasts for global growth
– yet again. Little wonder:
the world economy has few
bright spots – and even
those are dimming rapidly.
Among advanced economies,
the US has experienced two
quarters of growth averaging
1 percent. Further monetary
easing has boosted a cyclical
recovery in the eurozone,
though potential growth in
most countries remains well
below 1 percent. In Japan,
so-called Abenomics is
running out of steam, with
the economy slowing since
mid-2015 and edging close to
recession. In the UK, uncer-
tainty surrounding the June
referendum on continued EU
membership is leading firms
to keep hiring and capital
spending on hold. And other
advanced economies – such
as Canada, Australia and
Norway – face headwinds
from low commodity prices.
Things are not much better
in most emerging econo-
mies. Among the five Brics
countries, two (Brazil and
Russia) are in recession,
one (South Africa) is barely
growing, another (China) is
experiencing a sharp struc-
tural slowdown, and India is
doing well only because – in
the words of its central bank
governor, Raghuram Rajan –
in the kingdom of the blind,
the one-eyed man is king.
Many other emerging mar-
kets have slowed since 2013
as well, owing to weak exter-
nal conditions, economic
fragility (stemming from
loose monetary, fiscal, and
credit policies in the good
years), and, often, a move
away from market-oriented
reforms and toward variants
of state capitalism.
Worse, potential growth
has also fallen in advanced
and emerging economies.
For starters, high levels of
private and public debt are
constraining spending –
especially growth-enhancing
capital spending, which fell
(as a share of GDP) after the
global financial crisis and has
not recovered to pre-crisis
levels.
That decline in investment
implies slower productivity
growth, while ageing popula-
tions in developed countries
– and in an increasing num-
ber of emerging markets (for
example, China, Russia, and
South Korea) – reduce the
labour input in production.
The rise in income and
wealth inequality exacer-
bates the global saving glut,
which is the counterpart of
the global investment slump.
As income is redistributed
from labour to capital, it
flows from those who have a
higher marginal propensity to
spend (low- and middle-in-
come households) to those
who have a higher marginal
propensity to save (high-in-
come households and corpo-
rations).
Moreover, a protracted cycli-
cal slump can lead to low-
er-trend growth. Economists
call this “hysteresis”: long-
term unemployment erodes
workers’ skills and human
capital; and, because innova-
tion is embedded in new cap-
ital goods, low investment
leads to permanently lower
productivity growth.
19 analysis19 analysis
Has the global economic growth malaise become the 'new normal'?

20. Finally, with so many fac-
tors dragging down potential
growth, structural changes
are needed to boost potential
growth. But such an overhaul
is occurring at a suboptimal
rate in advanced and emerg-
ing economies, because all
of the costs and disloca-
tions are front loaded, while
the benefits occur over the
medium and long term.
This gives opponents of
reform a political advantage.
Meanwhile, growth remains
below the diminished poten-
tial. A painful de-leveraging
process implies that private
and public spending need to
fall, and that savings must
rise, to reduce high defi-
cits and debts. This process
started in the US after the
housing bust, then spread
to Europe, and is ongoing in
emerging markets that spent
the past decade on a borrow-
ing binge.
At the same time, the policy
mix has not been ideal. With
most advanced economies
pivoting too quickly to fiscal
retrenchment, the burden of
reviving growth was placed
almost entirely on uncon-
ventional monetary policies,
which have diminishing
returns (if not counterpro-
ductive effects).
Asymmetric adjustment
between debtor and creditor
economies has also under-
mined growth. The for-
mer, having overspent and
under-saved, had to spend
less and save more when
markets forced them to do
so, whereas the latter were
not forced to spend more and
save less. This exacerbated
the global savings glut and
investment slump.
Finally, hysteresis further
weakened actual growth.
A cyclical slump reduced
potential growth, and the
reduction in potential growth
prospects led to further
cyclical weakness, as spend-
ing declines when expecta-
tions are revised downward.
There are no easy political
solutions to the quandary.
Unsustainably high debt
should be reduced in a rapid
and orderly fashion to avoid
a long and protracted (often
a decade or longer) de-lever-
aging process.
But orderly debt-reduction
mechanisms are not available
for sovereign countries and
are difficult to implement
within countries for house-
holds, firms, and financial
institutions.
Likewise, structural and
market-oriented reforms are
necessary to bolster poten-
tial growth. But, given the
timing of costs and benefits,
such measures are especially
unpopular if an economy is in
a slump.
It will be no less difficult to
leave behind unconventional
monetary policies, as the
US Federal Reserve recently
suggested by signaling that
it will normalise policy inter-
est rates more slowly than
expected. Meanwhile, fiscal
policy – especially productive
public investment that boosts
both the demand and supply
sides – remains hostage to
high debts and misguided
austerity, even in countries
with the financial capacity to
undertake a slower consoli-
dation.
Thus, for the time being,
we are likely to remain in
what the IMF calls the “new
mediocre”, Larry Summers
calls “secular stagnation”,
and the Chinese call the
“new normal”, But make no
mistake: there is nothing
normal or healthy about
economic performance that
is increasing inequality and,
in many countries, leading
to a populist backlash – both
on the right and the left –
against trade, globalisation,
migration, technological
innovation, and market-ori-
ented policies. – Project
Syndicate●
• Nouriel Roubini is a
professor at NYU’s Stern
School of Business and
has worked for the IMF,
the Federal Reserve, and
the World Bank.
20 analysis20 analysis