HARARE - Food prices and other basic commodities are set to increase
following an announcement by the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority that a 25
percent surtax would be charged on the commodities starting January 1.
The development follows disclosures that government officials, including
ministers, were bringing commodities into the country without paying duty.
This includes luxury motor vehicles and even food.
The surtax, according to Zimra, will be charged on things such as food
stuffs, second-hand light passenger motor-vehicles which are more than five
years old from the date of original manufacture, and many other commodities.
Reads the notice in part: “...Surtax of 25 percent of the value for duty
purposes shall be charged and paid in respect of the importation into
Zimbabwe.
“Included in the goods to be taxed are double cab vehicles for the transport
of goods, foodstuffs such as fresh, chilled as well as frozen whole
chickens, frozen cuts and offals, milk and cream, yoghurt, fermented milk,
buttermilk, cheese, bird’s eggs, potatoes, tomatoes, onions and shallots,
garlic, carrots and turnips, mixtures of vegetables, other vegetables, peas
(excluding garden peas and marple peas), beans, sausages and similar
products, uncooked pasta, jams, fruit jellies, marmalades, soup and broth
preparations, sweet biscuits, tomato ketchup and other tomato sauces,” the
notice added.
Alcoholic beverages such as malt beer, wine, cider, brandy, whisky, vodka
and spirits will also attract surtax.
Smokers will not be spared either as virginia type flue-cured tobacco,
burley tobacco as well as all other tobacco types will be taxed.
Other products that will be attracting surtax range from beauty products to
electric household equipment such as refrigerators, ovens, cookers and other
reception apparatus for television sets.
Economic analyst John Robertson said the move by Zimra will trigger massive
price increases which will increase inflation.
Robertson said; “It will add to the cost of those things unless if we can
produce them ourselves.
A lot of these goods are not being made in the quantities needed by the
country and in most cases we can’t find them in our local shops because we
do not have the machinery to make them.
Power cuts are also negatively affecting our manufacturing industry and we
have experienced a loss of skilled people.”
He added: “We will see an increase in the price of buying these goods and it
is going to affect inflation first and in the next two years we might see a
positive result in that we might be able to produce our own products but
this will be in the long run.”
following an announcement by the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority that a 25
percent surtax would be charged on the commodities starting January 1.
The development follows disclosures that government officials, including
ministers, were bringing commodities into the country without paying duty.
This includes luxury motor vehicles and even food.
The surtax, according to Zimra, will be charged on things such as food
stuffs, second-hand light passenger motor-vehicles which are more than five
years old from the date of original manufacture, and many other commodities.
Reads the notice in part: “...Surtax of 25 percent of the value for duty
purposes shall be charged and paid in respect of the importation into
Zimbabwe.
“Included in the goods to be taxed are double cab vehicles for the transport
of goods, foodstuffs such as fresh, chilled as well as frozen whole
chickens, frozen cuts and offals, milk and cream, yoghurt, fermented milk,
buttermilk, cheese, bird’s eggs, potatoes, tomatoes, onions and shallots,
garlic, carrots and turnips, mixtures of vegetables, other vegetables, peas
(excluding garden peas and marple peas), beans, sausages and similar
products, uncooked pasta, jams, fruit jellies, marmalades, soup and broth
preparations, sweet biscuits, tomato ketchup and other tomato sauces,” the
notice added.
Alcoholic beverages such as malt beer, wine, cider, brandy, whisky, vodka
and spirits will also attract surtax.
Smokers will not be spared either as virginia type flue-cured tobacco,
burley tobacco as well as all other tobacco types will be taxed.
Other products that will be attracting surtax range from beauty products to
electric household equipment such as refrigerators, ovens, cookers and other
reception apparatus for television sets.
Economic analyst John Robertson said the move by Zimra will trigger massive
price increases which will increase inflation.
Robertson said; “It will add to the cost of those things unless if we can
produce them ourselves.
A lot of these goods are not being made in the quantities needed by the
country and in most cases we can’t find them in our local shops because we
do not have the machinery to make them.
Power cuts are also negatively affecting our manufacturing industry and we
have experienced a loss of skilled people.”
He added: “We will see an increase in the price of buying these goods and it
is going to affect inflation first and in the next two years we might see a
positive result in that we might be able to produce our own products but
this will be in the long run.”
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