Credit crunch acid test for Gaolathe

With impressive GDP growth rates of an average seven percent in the recent past, backed by a flourishing mining industry, the government has received several regional and international accolades for running the economy well.

But tables are turning as the mining sector comes under a serious threat from the global credit crunch. It is against this background that the Executive Director of BOCCIM, Maria Machailo-Ellis, says the government must come up with a cocktail of interventions to keep the economy afloat and ensure a speedy recovery."The challenges we face are actually a wake-up call to the government to prove their creativity," she says. "We in the private sector believe there are a number of options the government can look at which must be presented as a balanced package to avoid negative repercussions.