Farai Mabeza, Senior Staff Writer 
ECONOMIC think tank, Zimbabwe Institute of Strategic Thinking (ZIST) will this week host bankers, captains of industries, heads of parastatals and other government leaders in the resort town of Kariba for an indaba themed around the use of strategy in economic development.
The conference will run under the theme ‘Leveraging strategy to propel Zimbabwe to higher business and economic frontiers’.
“We are hosting government, all critical sectors of the economy, researchers, and academics among others. The focus will be on strategy as an anchor of national development and economic growth. “We are expecting over 150 delegates to converge and come up with possible solutions to deal with our crisis in different entities,”
ZIST chief executive Tinashe Muzamhindo explained this week. “Our core objective is to bring the whole country together to focus on strategy through solution-focused thinking”. ZIST describes itself as a solution-oriented think tank whose main thrust is “to provide strategy through solution-focused thinking around the current trajectory”.
“The conference will focus on dialogue around key strategic issues affecting our country, with a view to fostering practical and objective solutions towards Zimbabwe’s development agenda. “A position paper will be produced after the conference with key proposed interventions, and submitted to the key ministries,” Muzamhindo said.
“Thereafter, an action plan shall be adopted for the implementation of the interventions. Delegates shall be kept informed of these issues in terms of progress.” ZIST said this was in line with its vision which is to be the leading strategic thinking organisation in the country and beyond as a research institution that mobilises expertise and ideas to influence the policymaking process. “The organisation performs research and advocacy concerning issues such as political strategy, social policy, economics and so on.
ZIST was formed in July 2020 and it’s registered as a trust. It collaborates and works with various organisations to strategically come up with homegrown solutions to the problems bedevilling the country.
“ZIST is a membership organisation which focuses on convergence that advances sustainable development and serves as an important catalyst for ideas, solutions and action. ZIST brokers ideas, stimulates public debate and offers creative yet practical solutions to tackle the country’s greatest pressing problems that include inequality, political crises, poverty and economic conundrum,” Muzamhindo said.
