One of Zimbabwe’s leading gold-producing companies, Betterbrands, has delivered nearly 60 tonnes of gold to Fidelity Printers and Refinery (FPR) in the past four years, bringing in an estimated USD$6 billion to circulate in the economy, information at hand shows.
There has been unsubstantiated information circulating that Betterbrands, owned by top businessman Pedzai Scott Sakupwanya, was receiving unjustified incentives from FPR of a minimum of 5 percent for gold delivered.
However, as it turns out, the incentive is for everyone, including artisanal miners. Initially, the incentive was paid for deliveries of a minimum of 20kg per calendar month. However, FPR recently revised it to 500 grammes per calendar month to benefit artisanal miners, a move that has boosted gold deliveries.
The incentive scheme is open to all artisanal and small-scale producers. It increases to up to 9 percent depending on the quantities delivered to Fidelity.
In 2021, Betterbrands delivered 14 tonnes; in 2022, 18 tonnes; in 2023, 12 tonnes; and in 2024, 15 tonnes—amounting to nearly 60 tonnes over four years.
This brought in much-needed foreign currency, estimated at approximately USD$6 billion.
A Ministry of Finance official who spoke on condition of anonymity said it boggles the mind how Betterbrands is now one of the companies being used to fight President Emmerson Mnangagwa by his enemies, yet the company should be applauded for its gold deliveries in Zimbabwe.
“It’s no joke that Betterbrands and Honourable Sakupwanya (Scott) have delivered so much gold in such a short space of time. The incentive put up by the Central Bank has pushed Betterbrands to greater heights. All gold producers are benefiting from this, but Betterbrands delivered far more than anyone else.
“Their incentive then gets higher and higher, and it defies logic how they can be said to be illegally earning the incentive. Any gold producer benefits from this. What more can you ask for? Scott is bringing foreign currency to the country, and instead of vilifying him, we must applaud his great work,” said the official.
A Betterbrands official refused to say much when contacted for comment, stating: “Records of our performances over the years are at Fidelity; please check with them.”
Zimbabwe is not the only country to introduce incentives on gold. Countries like Colombia, Ecuador, Mongolia, and the Philippines have done the same to boost gold deliveries. Central banks in these countries have committed to supporting responsible artisanal and small-scale gold mining by signing ‘The London Principles.’ These principles help structure and formalize Domestic Purchase Programmes (DPPs), allowing central banks to buy gold produced by domestic artisanal and small-scale miners in local currency. This approach benefits miners with transparent buying processes and pricing while enabling central banks to add gold to their reserves without using foreign currency.
