Energy sector key in the development of economy

PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa says investment in the energy sector was and that his administration was creating an enabling environment for independent power producers to thrive.

He was giving the keynote address at the 4th International Renewable Energy Conference and Expo held in Victoria Falls last week.

“Those in my administration attached to this sector should double their efforts and focus,” he said.

“I commend independent power producers who are taking advantage and opportunities in the energy and power development sector by leveraging the prescribed assets of insurance and pension funds. I challenged other financial institutions in our country to be more creative in their funding mechanisms and also play their part by supporting investments in the energy sector.”

Mnangagwa said the energy sector was key in the development of the country’s economy.

“For all the coal we have in the country, all the rivers we have in Zimbabwe, the water bodies we have in Zimbabwe, the sun which shines from the 1 January to 31 December, we run short of energy. A shame to us,” he said.

Mnangagwa said players in the energy industry should support sectors such as mining and agriculture, noticing the key role they play in the country’s economy.

The conference organised by The Standard in collaboration with the Ministry of Energy and Power Development.

AMH are the publishers of The Standard, NewsDay, Zimbabwe Independent and Southern Eye. The group also owns tele-radio platform Heart and Soul.

Mnangagwa also raised alarm over the theft and vandalism of the country’s electrical infrastructure and urged academic institutions to find a way to stop the problem. The power utility is facing widespread vandalism of electricity cables by thieves wanting to extract copper, which has a ready market outside the country.

“As the President and the patron of this conference and expo, I remain gravely concerned with continued vandalism and theft of our county's energy infrastructure,” Mnangagwa, who is the patron of the International Renewable Energy Conference and Expo, said while officially opening the indaba in Victoria Falls yesterday

“We need our young girls and boys in universities to develop technologies to deal with these thieves.

“Stakeholders in the criminal justice system together with communities throughout the country are urged to collaborate more closely towards ending such criminal and treasonous acts,” he said.