Johannesburg - Zimbabwe is open for investment and investors must not postpone their decisions to come and invest in the country, said the country's Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa.
In an address at the Zimbabwe Trade and Investment Executive Breakfast meeting on Friday hosted by Zimbabwean newspaper The Herald Business in Johannesburg, Chinamasa said Zimbabwe is a giant waking up.
"We are not a basket case. The potential we have is enormous," said Chinamasa.
"We are open and ready for investment from South Africa. I believe you have a moral and business obligation to invest in your neighbour."
Chinamasa said prosperity should be shared and Zimbabwe was looking for a "permanent relationship" with South African investors.
Zimbabwe has been "through hell" since 1998, but the worst is now over, he said.
"We are about to run, to sprint. We are looking for partners to sprint with us," he said.
"We are not an island, we need to go back into the global economy to play our part."
Chinamasa said Zimbabwe is looking for capital from investors, and is on the right track to ensure food security and nutrition and to eradicate poverty.
Strategies are in place to deal with the policy environment to ensure consistency, continuity, and clarity, he said.
Chinamasa said the Zimbabwean government relies on investors to come up with clear policies.
“I am saying we rely on you, because when you come to invest in our country you must tell us the challenges you are facing and that will help us correct them."
Chinamasa said potential investors need not worry about the country's debt.
'Zim is not insolvent'
"We are not insolvent. We have now crafted a path towards our destiny of economic growth and prosperity."
Zimbabwe has a diversity of resources, including educated people.
Chinamasa told potential investors Zimbabwe has a huge infrastructure deficit, including roads, housing, and general infrastructure.
"This infrastructure gap is basically an opportunity for you, the investors."
Zimbabwe has 40 types of minerals, including gold, platinum, and coal, he added.
It is important that Zimbabwe change its relationship with developed countries. It is working towards building links between various sectors, structural changes had taken place, and there is "sustained political stability".
"The reality is we are now politically stable. The perception that you have that we don't respect private property is not true. The land issue has been addressed."
He said unless Zimbabwe became as prosperous as South Africa, Zimbabweans would continue to "bother" the country by crossing the border to find work.