AMSTERDAM: Zimbabwean companies are set to benefit from a €700 million facility unveiled last July by the Netherlands government earmarked for the development of small to medium businesses in 66 developing countries, the Dutch envoy has said.
Gera Sneller, the Netherlands ambassador to Zimbabwe, Zambia and Malaw, told The Source last week that her country last year developed a new business instrument called the Dutch Good Growth Fund to fund business development in emerging markets and developing countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Central and Eastern Europe.
As the Dutch embassy in Zimbabwe, we held a one day seminar to publicise this fund to Zimbabwe, Zambia and Malawi and we have had a resounding response to this fund from Zimbabwean companies, SMEs and intermediary financial management companies,” she said.
Sneller said at the moment the embassy was working to promote business between the two countries and to attract Dutch investors to Zimbabwe.
The trade relations between Zimbabwe and Netherlands have been good over the years although we have noticed a huge decline in the exports to Netherlands from Zimbabwe (from $13, 287 million in 2010 to $5, 233 million in 2012) due to the general economic decline that Zimbabwe has experienced over the past few years.
However, exports to Zimbabwe from the Netherlands have slightly increased from $18 million in 2010 to $19,3 million in 2012,” she added.
