Categories: Stories

Courier Connect says it requires $3.8m to stay afloat

Zimbabwe’s state run logistics firm, Courier Connect says it urgently requires capital injection of up to $3.8 million to stay afloat but is failing to attract external sources of finance owing to a weak balance sheet as it does not own any immovable property.

Courier Connect, a former Zimpost subsidiary before it was weaned off in 2008, says it has a 15 percent share in the market dominated by international firms such as DHL and FedEx, but faces closure after its operating licence expired at the weekend.

Managing director Isaac Muchokumuri told a parliamentary committee on ICT and Postal and Courier Services yesterday that the company was hard pressed for working capital and risked losing its operating license as it was failing to pay the fee of $57 000.

“The current license expired on 18 July, 2015, and we may be forced to cease operations by the regulator as we are failing to raise the required licence fee,” said Muchokumuri.

“There is need for massive investment of about $3.860 million for the company to compete effectively with well established world class commercial courier operators licensed in Zimbabwe.”

Muchokumuri said the company requires $400 000 for working capital and to pay off accumulated statutory debts to the National Social Security Authority (NSSA), Zimbabwe Revenue Authority and the Zimbabwe Manpower Development Fund (ZIMDEF).

As at December last year, the company’s debts amounted to $871 000 with 67 percent of the debts owed to statutory bodies.

Last year, Courier Connect had its bank accounts garnished several times by ZIMRA and NSSA, Muchokumuri said.- The Source

(173 VIEWS)

This post was last modified on %s = human-readable time difference 7:15 pm

Charles Rukuni

The Insider is a political and business bulletin about Zimbabwe, edited by Charles Rukuni. Founded in 1990, it was a printed 12-page subscription only newsletter until 2003 when Zimbabwe's hyper-inflation made it impossible to continue printing.

Recent Posts

ZiG loses steam, falls against US dollar for five consecutive days

The Zimbabwe Gold fell against the United States dollar for five consecutive days from Monday…

November 22, 2024

Indian think tank says Starlink is a wolf in sheep’s clothing

An Indian think tank has described Starlink, a satellite internet service provider which recently entered…

November 18, 2024

ZiG firms against US dollar for 10 days running but people still do not have confidence in the currency

Zimbabwe’s new currency, the Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG), firmed against the United States dollars for 10…

November 16, 2024

Zimbabwe among the top countries with the widest gap between the rich and poor

Zimbabwe is among the top 30 countries in the world with the widest gap between…

November 14, 2024

Can the ZiG sustain its rally against the US dollar?

Zimbabwe’s battered currency, the Zimbabwe Gold, which was under attack until the central bank devalued…

November 10, 2024

Will Mnangagwa go against the trend in the region?

Plans by the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front to push President Emmerson Mnangagwa to…

October 22, 2024