By Alois Vinga
Former TelOne managing director, Chipo Mutasa has been appointed to the position of Board Chairperson at the recently created Mutapa Investment Fund.
She will steer the fund alongside other six board members appointed by President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
Mutapa Investment Fund is a pool of resources i.e. public equities, commodity royalties and allocations from the government that will be invested in the future.
The history of the fund can be traced back to 2014 when the Sovereign Wealth Fund Act was enacted. Although it has had very little activity since its establishment, the fund has very clear objectives, such as to invest for future generations and support the country’s development goals amongst others.
Through Statutory Instrument (S.I.) 156 of 2023, some amendments were made, including renaming the fund Mutapa Investment Fund.
Distinguished 20 state-owned enterprises, including National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) and People’s Own Savings Bank (POSB) amongst others, will have their shareholding transferred into the fund.
Announcing the new board members on Monday, Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube said the new board will be led by Mutasa.
“I am pleased to announce that, as a further step towards the reforms and the operationalisation of the Fund, His Excellency, the President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, Cde. Dr. E. D. Mnangagwa has approved the appointment of the following professionals to serve as Board members of the Mutapa Investment Fund:
“Chipo Mutasa (Chairperson) and Lesley Ndlovu the Vice Chairperson. The other board members will include Thembelihle Khumalo, Farai Mtamangira, Bart Mswaka, Charity Jinya and Prassad Bhamre,” said Ncube.
The fund has attracted mixed feelings from the society with many describing it as a grand looting machine plot that lacks involvement of public scrutiny in its crafting.
However, some believe that the initiative is noble as it delivers the parastatals from interference of ministers within the line ministries they used to fall under among other positives.
