Botswana August 2006 |
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| Zimbabwe’s Woes Boost Francistown Business, (Mmegi/The Reporter, 2006-08-02):-The economy of Botswana's second city is greatly boosted by the current situation in Zimbabwe. Everyday Zimbabweans travel to Francistown to purchase what they cannot get in their country from petrol, clothes to food. Besides the traders, who come specifically to purchase produce in bulk, there are numerous other Zimbabweans, who walk the streets of Francistown every day bringing in money to the city and helping sales everywhere soar. The reintroduction of the Francistown-Bulawayo passenger train two months ago is testimony that many Zimbabweans travel between the two countries. Shops, which benefit greatly from the Zimbabweans are mostly the Chinese shops. Beauty Mbambo, a Zimbabwean who resides in Bulawayo says that she comes to Francistown once a week. Mbambo says that she has a stall in the Bulawayo flea market where she sells clothes and shoes. "I buy most of the things from here in bulk and always buy from the Chinese shops, because I find their things very cheap. There are some weeks when there is a lot of demand for the clothes I sell in the flea market and I travel to Francistown almost everyday," said Mbambo. Mbambo is pleased with the service she gets from these Chinese shops, which even allow some of these traders to make their purchases in South African Rands sparing them the hassle of standing in long queues in the bank. Another Zimbabwean Shingirai Makoni says he travels to Francistown once a week to purchase goods to sell in his electronics shop, which is based in Harare. Like Mbambo, Makoni says he always buys electronics from the Chinese shops in bulk and finds them very affordable. "It is worth travelling from Harare to Francistown for these electronics because there is also a variety of brands. I don't only buy from Chinese shops but I do prefer them as they have very good things," said Makoni. He added that his shop also sells shoes, which he gets from Chinese shops at discounted prices. Another Zimbabwean, James Dhliwayo says he travels to Francistown twice a month to buy clothes, blankets and electrical appliances, which he sells in the streets of Bulawayo and at the flea market. Xinque Wang, owner of Best Choice Shop in Haskins street says that his shop benefits a lot from Zimbabweans who come to Francistown everyday. "Zimbabweans come to this town in large numbers and most of them buy from my shop. We do appreciate what they do as they make our businesses successful," said Wang. Wang added that some Batswana buy from his shop but do not buy in bulk like the Zimbabweans. He said that month end is usually a busy time in his shop as that is when most Zimbabweans travel to Francistown. A Pharmacist, Winston Mbere from Living Water Pharmacy also agreed that Zimbabweans boost the Francistown economy. He believes that everybody in Francistown benefits from their presence, especially the Chinese shops. Mbere said that some Zimbabweans buy medicine from his pharmacy, but not in bulk. "A few years back most of them could afford to buy medicine from here in bulk but because the Zim Dollar has greatly weakened against the Pula, most of them can no longer afford to buy medicine from here", said Mbere. Mbere pointed out that most medicines are cheaper in Zimbabwe than here, which could be the reason why they choose to buy them back home. | |
South African Migration Project (SAMP) - Queen's University - http://www.queensu.ca/samp |