Tinotenda Hove – Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube has come under fire for defending steep new import duties on selected textile products, a move critics say exposes policy desperation and risks further damaging an already crippled industry.

In the 2026 National Budget, Treasury imposed a punitive 300 percent duty on certain textile items, a decision that has alarmed players in the clothing and textile sector who argue the policy is disconnected from current industrial realities.

While Ncube claims the measure is meant to support domestic production and attract investment, manufacturers insist local textile firms simply do not have the capacity to meet national demand, making the duties counterproductive and potentially harmful.

Speaking at the Post-Budget Breakfast Meeting on Monday, co-hosted by Zimpapers and the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries, Zimbabwe Clothing Manufacturers Association (ZCMA) chairman Jeremy Youmans warned that the policy risks strangling manufacturers who rely on imported fabric to survive.

Youmans argued that the proposed 40 percent duty should only apply to finished goods, not fabric, which he stressed is a critical raw material for clothing manufacturers and an essential intermediate input for home textile producers.

Despite these concerns, Ncube brushed aside the criticism, insisting the duties were justified. He said:
“The duties we have imposed… we are being driven by the need to support local production and local investments.”

He further claimed:
“So, this is an incentive to invest locally and create jobs.”

Dismissing accusations that the policy could harm other players in the value chain, the Finance Minister added:
“It is not an incentive to punish (other players) or anything like that. There is a need to drive domestic investment.”

However, industry observers note that Zimbabwe’s textile sector has been largely dormant since the early 2000s, following the collapse of major companies such as David Whitehead, Merlin and Kadoma Textiles. Critics argue that without serious investment, financing, and modernisation, punitive duties alone cannot revive an industry hollowed out by years of hyperinflation, cheap imports, second-hand clothing, and policy inconsistency.

For many manufacturers, the new duties are seen not as a lifeline, but as another policy misstep that could deepen the crisis instead of fixing it.