Bulawayo is stepping up efforts to attract foreign investment and boost tourism as part of a broader plan to reimagine the city’s economy, with city leaders calling on Zimbabweans in the diaspora and British businesses to partner with the local authority in driving development.
Bulawayo Mayor David Coltart was speaking during a meeting with the Mayor of Reading in the United Kingdom, Dr Alice Mpofu-Coles, who paid a courtesy call on him at his council offices on Tuesday morning.
Mayor Coltart said the city was positioning itself as an attractive investment destination, with tourism identified as a key pillar of economic recovery.
“We are trying to promote our city and promote investment. We are in the process of reimagining the economy of Bulawayo, and a key component of that is tourism,” he said.
“Our ongoing challenge is water, and Britain can play a significant role in helping us address that problem.”
He said the city had previously hosted an investment promotion initiative, Khumbula Ekhaya, aimed at engaging Zimbabweans in the diaspora.
“We held the event in Harare and received commitments from investors who offered to support and expand our agenda. The idea now is to focus on Zimbabweans, particularly those in the diaspora, to partner with us,” Coltart said.
The mayor also encouraged global companies to consider Bulawayo as a base for operations such as call centres, citing the availability of skilled but unemployed young people.
“If companies can establish call centres in places like India, they should also consider setting them up here. We have many young people in their 20s who are well educated, with A-levels and university degrees, articulate and capable, but currently unemployed,” he said.
The meeting was also addressed by Dr Alice Mpofu-Coles, who outlined how partnerships between local authorities and businesses have supported development in Reading.
“In Reading, we have an organisation called REDA, where businesses come together to support development,” she said.
“Each business contributes towards the organisation, and when there is a need for development in the city, REDA plays a role in supporting that.”
Dr Mpofu-Coles said the model could provide a starting point for cooperation between Bulawayo and businesses in the UK.
“We can explore this as a first step — working with REDA, its businesses and its team, and we can put you in touch with them after I engage with the mayor’s team,” she said.
She added that collaboration between Bulawayo and Britain could begin with tourism and business development and expand into broader economic partnerships.
“If we start with tourism and business development between Bulawayo and Britain, that could be the beginning of a wider relationship,” she said.
REDA refers to Reading’s Economy and Destination Agency, an organisation that promotes business growth and tourism through partnerships between the local authority and the private sector.
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