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Harare - Are we a nation of educated fools? This question was once asked by a Zimbabwean writer, the editor of Zimbabwe's premier technology magazine TechnoMag.
In the article, the magazine editor wondered why Zimbabwe's much-publicised high literate levels are not converted into practical success and economic development.
After listening to recent statements by the newly-appointed ministers of indigenisation and energy respectively, I had to ask the same question: are we a nation of educated fools?
Lets start with the indigenisation minister. Now here is someone taking over a ministry whose actions and decisions have been identified as the biggest barrier to foreign investment in this country. This is a ministry in need of clarity and a sober mind; a ministry where calls have been made loud and clear for a new approach that brings comfort and understanding to would-be investors.
Clarity - the missing component
Most importantly, all investors are asking for is clarity and certainty.
Minister of Finance Patrick Chinamasa has been at the forefront, admitting and acknowledging that the country's indigenisation approach needs to be refined. One would expect an educated minister to make certainty on the law his number one priority.
However, newly-appointed Indigenisation Minister Christopher Mushowe's first statement had everything but certainty.
Addressing a youth meeting, Mushowe said government could go as far as giving Zimbabwean locals 99% of all foreign-owned businesses under the indigenisation and economic empowerment programme, or even much less.
The minister said: “If we decide as a country that we must give foreigners 60% and we take 40%, it’s a decision. And if we decide the foreigner must take 20% and we take 80%, it’s our decision in consultation with the investor, so we can’t start saying their money is more important than our resource because it doesn’t work like that.”
Such a statement makes you wonder whether we are educated or not.
Next in line was the new Minister of Energy and Power Development, Samuel Udenge. His first public statement was to announce that government has reduced blended fuel to 5% from 15%.
Seasonal factors simply ignored
Udenge said heavy rains that have pounded the country for the past week have rendered the sugarcane fields in Chisumbanje inaccessible to cane harvesters due to the wet clay soil, resulting in reduced production of ethanol.
Now how did government come up with a high blending ratio for a product that is seasonal, as we are now finding out? How do we make a decision which does not leave room to stockpile in times of need?
Such flip-flopping of policy is the reason why we now hear that some fuel stations have been selling E10 disguised as unleaded petrol. Was the decision to go all the way up to 15% based on the ethanol production of one monopoly company, an educated decision?
I guess Technomag was right to ask whether "our education system only teaches us to read and write figures and fails to teach us to critically think around sustainable solutions".
With decisions like that, what good is this literacy?
In the article, the magazine editor wondered why Zimbabwe's much-publicised high literate levels are not converted into practical success and economic development.
After listening to recent statements by the newly-appointed ministers of indigenisation and energy respectively, I had to ask the same question: are we a nation of educated fools?
Lets start with the indigenisation minister. Now here is someone taking over a ministry whose actions and decisions have been identified as the biggest barrier to foreign investment in this country. This is a ministry in need of clarity and a sober mind; a ministry where calls have been made loud and clear for a new approach that brings comfort and understanding to would-be investors.
Clarity - the missing component
Most importantly, all investors are asking for is clarity and certainty.
Minister of Finance Patrick Chinamasa has been at the forefront, admitting and acknowledging that the country's indigenisation approach needs to be refined. One would expect an educated minister to make certainty on the law his number one priority.
However, newly-appointed Indigenisation Minister Christopher Mushowe's first statement had everything but certainty.
Addressing a youth meeting, Mushowe said government could go as far as giving Zimbabwean locals 99% of all foreign-owned businesses under the indigenisation and economic empowerment programme, or even much less.
The minister said: “If we decide as a country that we must give foreigners 60% and we take 40%, it’s a decision. And if we decide the foreigner must take 20% and we take 80%, it’s our decision in consultation with the investor, so we can’t start saying their money is more important than our resource because it doesn’t work like that.”
Such a statement makes you wonder whether we are educated or not.
Next in line was the new Minister of Energy and Power Development, Samuel Udenge. His first public statement was to announce that government has reduced blended fuel to 5% from 15%.
Seasonal factors simply ignored
Udenge said heavy rains that have pounded the country for the past week have rendered the sugarcane fields in Chisumbanje inaccessible to cane harvesters due to the wet clay soil, resulting in reduced production of ethanol.
Now how did government come up with a high blending ratio for a product that is seasonal, as we are now finding out? How do we make a decision which does not leave room to stockpile in times of need?
Such flip-flopping of policy is the reason why we now hear that some fuel stations have been selling E10 disguised as unleaded petrol. Was the decision to go all the way up to 15% based on the ethanol production of one monopoly company, an educated decision?
I guess Technomag was right to ask whether "our education system only teaches us to read and write figures and fails to teach us to critically think around sustainable solutions".
With decisions like that, what good is this literacy?
