eBusiness Weekly
Martin Kadzere
The Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) has signed an agreement with an Indian vehicle manufacturer to commence assembling trucks at its plant in Harare, an official has revealed.
This comes as Quest Motors Corporation in Mutare has also implored Government to consider giving it a share of supply of conversional buses under the ongoing massive recapitalisation of Zupco.
IDC, a State-owned entity with interests in various industries including agro chemicals, partly owns Willovale Motor Industries, one of the country’s largest vehicle assemblers.
Since its inception, WMI has assembled various popular vehicle brands — ranging from small cars and mini buses to large utility vehicles.
Some of the vehicles that WMI used to assemble include Bedford and Scania trucks.
Ben Kumalo, general manager of IDC told Business Weekly that the Indian car maker was now mobilising financial resources to venture full throttle into the business.
“We have signed the agreement with a very reputable Indian car manufacturer, which is already mobilising resources to start assembling utility vehicles here,” Kumalo said.
He, however, could not be drawn into disclosing the name of the Indian company citing confidentiality.
Zimbabwe launched Motor Industry and Development Policy covering period between 2018 and 2030, seeking to attract foreign direct investment into the automotive assembly and components manufacturing sector to 10 percent of the total FDI by 2030.
The policy also seeks to achieve full capacity utilisation while boosting employment levels.
