eBusiness Weekly
Kudzanai Sharara
After ordering a 21-day lockdown, Government went on to list companies and services that are deemed to be essential and one can hardly fault authorities for coming up with such a list.
In simple terms, essential businesses or services are those that were allowed to operate during the 21-day lockdown order.
Under Public Health (Covid-19 Prevention, Containment and Treatment) (National Lockdown) Order, 2020, Section 4 (c), every other business establishment shall be closed except for every business establishment providing an essential service or services in support of such a service.
Examples of businesses that were to remain open include but are not limited to pharmacies; banking institutions, supermarkets and food retail stores, and fuel outlets among others.
Government also left the list open ended and said it “is merely illustrative and is not intended to limit the scope of the definition of essential service”.
This saw some firms like Delta, for example also applying to have their business classified as essential, and the request was granted.
President Mnangagwa himself, in recognising the need for people to receive remittances also allowed the re-opening of Money Transfer Agencies.
There has also been confusion with regards which economic activity qualifies as an essential service or business, with police last week prohibiting farmers and traders from selling their produce, even confiscating them.
It took the intervention of President Mnangagwa for farmers and farm produce traders to be allowed back to their markets.
However, there are still many other businesses that will remain closed for the duration of the lockdown period.
Does that mean they aren’t “essential”?
This question is something that some businesses and households in the informal sector are currently grappling with and will feel the impact of when it’s time to pay the bills.
Michael Mudekwa has been operating at Glen View Industrial complex where he makes wardrobes, for the past 15 years.
That’s his only workplace and his only source of income. His four children, two in secondary school and two in primary school have their school fees and other needs paid for from his wardrobe making business. Apart from Mudekwa, and his Glen View Industrial complex colleagues, there is a whole value chain whose existence largely depend on those at the industrial complex. This will have knock-on effects.
The Glen View residential area is also home to quite a sizeable number of hairdressers and barbers. These too were forced to close as their services were deemed to be furthest from being essential, but then again, what if their livelihoods are sustained from what they make from these salons?
Every business exists because it is supplying something to somebody and proof is that when barbers finally open after lockdown, they will be inundated with clientele. This will be a demonstration of just how ‘essential’ these businesses are.
The truth of the matter is that every business is essential to its owners and the people who work there. Companies provide jobs and livelihoods. Every job that people go to everyday is essential to those doing it and those who created it. Last week, Zimbabwe Stock Exchange listed entity, Simbisa Brands announced that it was relieving its contract workers of their jobs, but only because authorities had deemed the fast foods business non-essential. The decision to reduce the workforce, according to Simbisa, was because the company no longer has revenue to pay salaries. The jury is still out in terms of how many more companies have resorted to laying off workers.
Before Covid-19 and the subsequent lockdown, none of those laid off would have guessed that they would be out of a job in the next few weeks. This is going to make life extremely difficult for them and certainly their landlords. Ask any landlord housing a Simbisa Brands outlet and they will confirm the quick services restaurant is an “essential” tenant. ZIMRA among others will feel the impact too.
As we report elsewhere in this article, RTG reveals it will lose approximately 6 percent of its revenue during the lockdown period. Can any of its stakeholders say this loss in revenue is not important or essential to the business?
The lost revenue, the lost jobs, the lost income should not be taken for granted. They are essential to the affected families and businesses, and post lockdown, plans must be put in place for affected businesses to get back to their fit.
Other countries, South Africa for example, have put in place stimulus packages and Zimbabwe, as limited as its resources are, must at least create an enabling environment for businesses to flourish once this whole lockdown or pandemic is over.
The country will not recover and will certainly not prosper unless we recognise just how essential every business is.
