Oscar Pistorius and the white fear factor - Features - Al Jazeera English

Oscar Pistorius and the white fear factor - Features - Al Jazeera English

ZIMASSET: Questions without answers?

Following the recent introduction of Zimasset I have so many questions on how the program can help the ordinary person on the street and how we as citizens can facilitate its implementation. No one is selling this program to the common people but I feel the selling points to the ordinary povo are eradication of poverty and corruption.

WHY NOT CARRY OUT A ROADSHOW ON ZIMASSET?

The government should carry out roadshows similar to the sanctions petition where ordinary people are told how Zimasset can be a tool for social and economic change. The roadshows will also highlight and articulate how corruption and poverty can be reduced if the policy is implemented.

People should be told of incentives on whistleblowing on corrupt activities. Government should be able to reward its citizens when they report cases of corruption; this will be an opportunity for government to have permanent checks and control over public funds.

What is the role of government departments like Ministry of Information, Indigenization, and Women Affairs, Education and Youth in sensitizing the people under their respective portfolio on the pro and cons of Zimasset?

WHAT IS ZIMASSET TO THE POOR?

Is Zimasset the answer to poverty and economic development for Zimbabwe or it is just another talking topic in bars and other social gathering like funerals and political rallies? Do we have the political will to tackle issues and implement?

What does it mean to the poor? Will it change their current situation or will it worsen it?

WHAT WILL BECOME OF THE UTILITIES?

How will Zimasset reduce rates to realistic levels?  What policies must be set in place to protect the public from extortionist and over staffed utilities?

Ideal rates and utility charges must be used as points of redistribution of wealth within a given economy. This calls for a fifth cluster on Public Utilities and Rates which will be able to have an oversight of charges being charged by other clusters.

 

 

WHAT WILL ZIMASSET DO FOR PUBLIC SERVANTS AND THEIR JOBS?

There is a need to go to Ministries, departments and sections that generates and collect revenues and take a detailed study of their activities. This will enable us to match and link revenue generating activities and the desired result of a particular utility. This will also allow government to direct savings to targeted areas of need,

The people have another unanswered question; is the current performance appraisal system aligned to Zimasset?

The civil servants who have been grossly underpaid or overcharged by utilities must get his or her just compensation through realistic performance management systems that cascade to utilities under their departments.

Civil servants have carried the burden of utilities and the government must take bold steps to reward them for their diligence and resilience since the year 2000.Has Zimasset addressed the concerns of the civil servants?

HOW WILL ZIMASSET REDUCE CORRUPTION?

The above approach will be able to identify areas where resources have been diverted and are being mishandled. It is known that poverty is the principle cause of corruption, not vice versa as a nation we have accepted this and corruption in turn drives poverty levels up.

Can we as a nation break this cycle by implementing Zimasset, and take decisive action?

 The top two priorities for Zimasset should be to tackle corruption followed by poverty reduction. Corruption and poverty reduction should both be targeted and be treated as a security issue.

WHAT ARE ZIMASSET DELIVERABLES?

Zimasset is being implemented by the highest office in the country the Office of the President and Cabinet that means the government has prioritized Zimasset. My questions are (1) What are the OPC deliverables?( 2) Is it how many corrupt people are arrested,or a sharp drop in poverty level or double digit economic growth rate?

The above questions must have answers from the authors and architects of Zimasset. When the people know the deliverables and answers, then the government will be able to sell this noble program. Yes we have it on paper now let us as a nation walk the talk.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Edmore Mbuzana Mlambo is not a professional writer but just a blogger. You can follow him on twitter.com/mbuzana1 or read his common nonsense on his blog www.edmorembuzanamlambo.blogspot.com or meet him on www.facebook.com/edmore.mbuzanamlambo.  

© Thornbridge Investments 2014

A LAYMAN'S LOOK AT ROBERT MUGABE'S LAND REFORM PROGRAM

This is not a praise piece to Robert Mugabe but an expression of my personal experience of the impact of his policies on my life and my immediate community. I would like to highlight the positive aspects and effects of the land issue and land reform.

I am deliberately leaving out the negatives which the so called independent media have by now discussed, twisted, distorted and exhausted the propaganda rhetoric on behalf of those the land was taken from. This is the propaganda that has resulted in sanctions being slapped on Zimbabwe.

My story, and this is the story of our people, began when I started renting a bottle store at Tambawaguta Business Centre in 2005 and I am still operating up to this day. This was in the midst and the height of the land revolution and I could hardly sell a crate of beer of the low incomes of the community around the business centre.

IMPACT OF THE LAND REFORM ON INCOME LEVEL

My sales were low in the beginning as most of my customers were urban workers and few commuters who passed through the highway.Farm workers from Burma Valley and the Vumba made up part of my customers but their incomes were very low but as the land reform progressed some of the farm workers and members of the local community became land owners. There has been a gradual increase in the income level of the people around the business centre as reflected by increase in business.

The new farmers are into timber harvesting, tobacco, maize and other cash crops and they can afford to stop and buy as they pass through on their way to and from town.

The land revolution has had a positive aspect on the income level on local households. Initially the people who were allocated land in the Vumba began harvesting timber and sawmills were established at our business centre. This development created employment for the locals especially the youths, the income had a ripple effect on the immediate micro-economy.

The increase of income levels had an amazing impact as  the locals were now employed as workers in the  timber processing industry. Those who had land could afford to hire labour to attend to their fields and this had a ripple effect on the immediate micro economy.

The locals would now afford to by basic farming implements, fund electrification of their homes and improve their lives. Cellphones and satellite televisions could now be afforded and the local shops were electrified .The local shops could now be able to stock perishable goods as electric  freezers  and microwave stoves were now able to function.

CREATION OF MEANINGFUL EMPLOYMENT

The land reform program has created work and meaningful employment for the locals as the

skills which the youth acquired in the Vumba on timber processing are now being transferred elsewhere. Skills like machine operating, logging, mechanics, welding and management and marketing  which the locals have acquired have seen locals working in timber estates in Nyanga,Penhalonga and Chimanimani.

The local economy is benefiting directly and indirectly from the land reform program even though the timber in the Vumba has been depleted. Income earned elsewhere is being ploughed back into the local community.

It is my hope that the new farmers in Vumba start replacing the pine trees and create further continuous employment and income for the local community.

THE LAND REFORM AND LOCAL INFRASTRUCTURE

In 2005 the business centre had nine shops and of these only one had electricity and four were operating. The local joke was that if you want to see electricity you must go to Burma. The Burma electricity line was for the white farmers and it passed overhead of the community.

Today as I write only three shops out of the nine do not have electricity and eight shops are operating. The avaliabilty of electricity is a direct result of the land reform program and Rural Electrification program.Locals are now engaged in meaningful income generating activities such as welding ,hairdressing and other activities that need electricity.

THE LAND REFORM AND ROBERT MUGABE

It is my belief that those who doubt the land reform should look around their communities and see the positive impacts and acknowledge its successes. In my opinion we should applaud the country’s astute leadership and the vision of Robert Gabriel Mugabe.

Let us discount the Rhodesian propaganda which has been used to court sanctions against our country to the dustbin of history.It is my belief that without the illegal economic sanctions and the chicanery of the Rhodesian sponsored opposition  Zimbabwe would be in a better economic position than where it is today.

(c)All rights reserved Thornbridge Investments 2014

GET EXTRA CASH WORK PART TIME FROM HOME

THORNBRIDGE INVESTMENT NETWORK SERVICES

Dear Potential Reseller of Consultancy Services,

Long time ago there was no shortage of employment but things have changed. The plain fact is that you will not find a job easily. Even a business degree does not guarantee you employment.

The fact is that people have to create work and employment for themselves.

This is the reason for this venture. We have a network of consultants that need a last mile contact with its client and you are that link.

 The concept is that our client provides their own funds and finance their own activities. The reseller role is to facilitate and channel services to the client at zero cost and in the process earns a commission.

RESELLER  SERVICE

Ø  You do not need any capital

Ø  No up front fees

Ø  You earn your commission at point of sale

Ø  You do not do any paperwork

Ø  You do not need an office

Ø  No training fees

.

WHAT YOU NEED?

Ø  Cell-phone

Ø  An email address or

Ø   A facebook account

Ø  A receipt book and yourself to do the work.

EARN MONEY BY BECOMING A RESELLER OF OUR

 CONSULTING SERVICES - YOU GET 10%OF THE FEES.

OUR SERVICES ON OFFER

1.      Company registration and sell of shelf company          $300-00

2.      Private business corporation registration                    $150-00

3.      CR 14 CR 6 Annual returns                                       $  60-00

4.      Renewal of liquor licence                                             $450-00

5.      Application for new liquor licence                                   $600-00

6.      Application for shop licences (depends on local authority)

RESELLER STARTER PACK

To get your reseller starter pack, all you need is to send us $1-00. This investment will cover free business consultancy service and make you an associate consultant for the rest of your life.

 I will sent you a list of approved shelf names for you resale at your own convenience .The list is updated on request by email.

.

All you have to do is fill in the application form on this leaflet or email your details to the email provided or join my group on facebook.

The group is called Thornbridge Investments Network or you can subscribe to my facebook account (facebook.com/edmore.mbuzanamlambo).

AGREEMENT FORM

Yes l would like to be a reseller.

Please find herewith my set-up fee of $1-00.

o   Sent me your reseller kit and I will pay on my first sale

.

o   Cheque  please make cheque out to THORNBRIDGE INVESTMENTS

o   Postal order to P.O. Box 630, Mutare, Zimbabwe

o   Cash

o   ECOCASH to 0773 037 230

o   Bank deposit/internet transfer

THORNBRIDGE INVESTMENT ZABG Account

19505403850723

o   Please debit my card

Card Number............................................................

Expiry DATE …………………………………………………………..

Name of card holder ……………………………………………………………………………………………….

I.D Number…………………………………………………………………………………..

Signature……………………………………………………..

CONTACT DETAILS

o   TEL: (00263) 0773 037 230  or email demorconsult@yahoo.com

o   www. edmorembuzanamlambo.blogspot.com

o   facebook.com/edmore.mbuzanamlambo

o   embuzana @ gmail.com

o   twitter#mbuzana 1

o   P O Box 630,

Mutare.

RESELLER POINTS AND CONTACT PERSONS

Mr D Huruwe, 77- 5^th Street, Mutare, Call 0772734469

Mr.J.J Kuripa, Matambo Complex Vengere, Rusape: Call 0778530873

Mr. M. Chirisa, Travel Centre, 1st Floor Cnr 3^rd/Jason Moyo, HARARE. Call 0712778620.

                                                          

Mr. S.Sithole, SMS Accounting, Chipinge , 0774790831

Mr. Thomas Mlambo, TMC , Machongwe  B.C, Chimani  0773119561

Mr. T. Mlambo ,TMC ,12/721 Gaza Township, Chipinge 0773119561

Mr Elijah Mugido,  Votary Distributors ,Chipinge. 0772312744

Mr. Chinheya,Nactus Investments, Ngangu,Chimanimani,0772444932

Mr. T.T.Moyo,Mocc Printers,Chimanimani,0775239972

©2012 All rights reserve Thornbridge Investments

COACHING IS IT A GAME OR A PROFESSION

COACHING IS A GAME IT IS NOT A PROFESSION

Coaching  a profession or just mumbo jumbo? No I think it is a game or simulation. It can not be a profession since we have been playing coaching since kindergarten… do not tell this to the billion dollar worldwide coaching and mentoring industry.

I am here to save you money by offering you an insight into how I develop a coaching a mentoring program. I will be interested to hear my readers’ comments. You can go to my blog on http//edmorembuzanamlambo.blogspot.com or email your comments at embuzana@gmail.com .

The core business of a life coach is to direct an individual to achieve one or more objective in life.This entails giving mental , moral support and even material support to the client.

.

The word LIFE I have used on my clients.

L in LIFE

This is the first stage you Listen to your client and Learn the problems that are blocking  his or her  development. Take notes at this stage and sketch the development path that you and your client need to walk through to achieve the objectives.

I in Life

This ‘ i ‘ in life stands for ‘EYE’. The coach must be able to see beyond the client’s problem by internalizing the feelings, fear and hope of the client.

F in life

This is a critical stage of life coaching and where the F words and four letter words are used and your expectations both as a client may be at crossroads and frustration is the order of the day. This where we need to sit down and FORMULATE a life plan. I call it the survival stage where both coach and client must do a realty check and come up with a workable life plan.

The plan should have deliverables and timetable  which both parties must commit themselves religiously. The plan should also be resourced either in the form of fees or other form of payment.

E in Life

The E in life stands for engagement. We must engage with our client on all levels. The coach must be involved in the business and social life in order for him to develop strategies that are relevant to the development of his or her client. The coach can seek the assistance of workmates, family members and others within the client’s social circle.

The E in life stands for the end. Coaching as I have already say is game or simulation. It must come to an end where we evaluate our successes and failures both as a client and coach. We must look at the agreed deliverables and see if  we have met our objectives.

The evaluation stage can also be used to see the effectiveness of the  coach ,his or her coaching programme or regime.

I would like to conclude by saying anyone can be a  life coach, as long as  a person has basic knowledge of the subject matter and your able to come with a structured coaching program. So Coach welcome to the game.

(c) All rights reserved Thornbridge Investments 2014

THE 5 STEPS FOR GROWTH FOR THE SMALL RETAILER

5 STEPS FOR GROWTH

I am a bottle store owner and I do not blog for a living. I blog for fun and I would like to share my experience with the world. I believe I am qualified to write on business since I have run a lodge, three bottles stores and a home-based business consultancy. I have closed the lodge and two of the bottle stores but I still do business consultancy for a living.

You and I have seen that little shop by the roadside as you passed. You will remember it from the time you were a child. It may be operating as a family business and it never grew but it has never closed either. It remains that small shop and it will never grow. I have always wondered why small businesses remain small and when I opened my first bottle store, I set out to live this challenge and come out with some solutions for growth.

This has been a challenge for both rural and urban retailers. This challenge can be overcome by adopting simple and tried strategies that the big retailers use. This is what I did to increase my bottle stores from one to three (and I might also tell you how I was forced to decrease them to one in my next blogs). Here are the five solutions to growth and they are not in order.

Increase your customer base

I know when we talk of growth in retail we visualize chains of supermarkets and lots of customers passing through the point of sales, now if I have one bottle store with ten crates and say 200 cigarettes it would be crazy to open a second branch as I will not have enough capital and stock.

The short term solution will be to increase our customer base. Customer bases are hard to increase but this can be increased by making your business visible through improved customer relationship management. There is nothing that beat good old advertising, sales promotions and word of mouth as ways to increase your customer base. Customers can win and be reached through the social media channels such as Facebook It is a must that the customer base be increased, Twitter, Google and other emerging social media firms on the internet.

I have opened a Facebook page for my bottle store and the responses have been wonderful and you can follow me on Facebook or like my bottle store page. My customers for the bottle store can also read my view on my blog. You can follow me on Twitter @mbuzana1

The increase of the customer base will result in an increase in turnover and this will spur the growth of the business and create a basis for further solutions.

Sell more products

Once you have increased your customer base and turnover, the next step is to increase the lines of products you sell. This will result in a further increase in both turnover and the customer base.

Develop new products and services

This is the climax of the growth solution as you will now be able to introduce new goods and services because you will by now have the muscle and capital to your established customer base. In my case, I might put a pool table or Wi-Fi in the bottle store. This process is the most important as the business owner must read both the market and competition as he or she introduces the new product and services.

Increase the price of your goods and services

At this point the business owner the especially if he is the only one at a location like our perennial rural store can afford to increase the price of his product to grow his business as he has no other option, except the last solution below.

Open a new branch

I have now come to a point where I now have adequate management skills and in some case, skilled and experienced staff. My customer base keeps the tills ringing and I have enough stocks and my cash flow is healthy and I making a profit, well this is the time to get a second wife…. No, it is time to open a second branch silly!!

The secret of opening a second branch is to set it up using existing stocks and staff. This will ensure a smooth take off. This is the last step in the growth process and we can start the cycle to get to the next level and open the third branch.

I have used my personal experiences to come up with this guide and I would greatly appreciate feedback both positive and negative. I have put my social media contacts to enable us to interact so happy hunting.

TIPS FOR THE NEW FARMER

THE GUIDELINE FOR THE ZIMBABWEAN NEW FARMER

I have been visiting the newly resettled farmer and I have observed that they are facing challenges. These challenges they face are almost identical for all farmers. I have summarized and grouped these into the following five categories.

KNOW YOUR LAND AND YOUR CROP

I have observed that the new farmer lack the knowledge of his land and the crop to grow on it. The farmer is growing the crop that he wants to grow, instead of growing the right crop for the soil and climate.

The farmer should consult the local agricultural extension officer, their neighbours or even the previous farm workers on the history of the farmer. The new farmer do no need to reinvent the wheel when it come to the crop, soil and labor as these are available. Most of the successful farmers I have met have inherited workers from the previous white farmers. These farmers have inherited invaluable experience and skills.

RECORD KEEPING

I am amazed most of the time I ask a farmer to produce his wages book or how much he paid for his or her input him or her always most of the time fail to produce the records. I have always wondered how a farmer can plan without records of previous activities such as wages, inputs or even weather.

These are basic records every farmer should have;

1. Time book

2. Wages book

3. Input book (Purchases by the farmer are recorded here)

4. Files for invoices

5. Sales book (everything the farmer sells must be recorded)

The above records will enable a bookkeeper to draw accounts of the farm. It is also important to note that the records will assist the farmer to draw up statutory returns.

SAFETY AND SECURITY

I have walked into farmhouses where the security is so lax that you could load the furniture and drive away without any problem at all. The farm security should be at the heart of all farming activities but it is relegated to the peripheral by the new farmer.

Here are basics of farm security;

1. Guards

2. Perimeter fence

3. Alarms

4. Fireguards on the perimeter

COMMUNICATIONS

It is very difficult to communicate with a new farmer especially where the wireless networks have not set up their boosters. The new farmer should set up a postal box or apply for landline.

The new farmer must also approach the local authority through the local councilor to improve the road network.

STATUTORY REQUIREMENTS FOR THE NEW FARMER

Farming is a commercial activities and every farmer is an employer. Every employer has some obligations to his or her employees and to the Government of Zimbabwe.

Here are the farmers’ statutory obligations;

1.       Pay As You Earn(Zimra)

2.        National Employment Council Levy

3.       Standards Development Fund levy

4.       National Social Security Authority

5.       Manpower Development Fund levy.

The above has been compiled to assist new farmers and for further assistance please contact the writer on mobile +263773037230 or visit www.edmorembuzanamlambo.blogspot.com or follow me on www.facebook.com/edmore.mbuzanamlambo or email me embuzana@gmail.com.

©All rights reserved   Thornbridge Investments P/l Zimbabwe