The Government has formally transferred the Zimbabwe Iron and Steel Company into the portfolio of the Mutapa Investment Fund, deepening state control over one of the country’s largest but long-dormant industrial assets.
The move, effected through Statutory Instrument 58 of 2026 under the Sovereign Wealth Fund of Zimbabwe Act, adds Zisco to the list of companies whose shares are vested in the sovereign wealth fund.
According to the Government Gazette notice, the law was amended to include “Zimbabwe Iron and Steel Company Limited” under entities now controlled by the Mutapa Fund.
The development follows a 2022 Cabinet decision naming Kuvimba Mining House as the preferred bidder to revive Zisco, which is about 89% state-owned.
The latest shift effectively places the collapsed steelmaker under Kuvimba’s parent structure, consolidating ownership within the Mutapa Fund, a vehicle that now oversees a growing number of underperforming state-linked enterprises.
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While the restructuring is intended to streamline management and attract investment, it also concentrates risk within a single entity already tasked with turning around multiple distressed assets.
Zisco, once a cornerstone of Zimbabwe’s industrial base, has been inactive for years, with repeated revival efforts failing to materialise into sustained production.
The transfer raises questions about the capacity of the Mutapa Fund to simultaneously rehabilitate several capital-intensive entities, particularly in sectors such as mining, energy and manufacturing, which require substantial financing.
Reviving Zisco alone is expected to require hundreds of millions of dollars in investment to restore operations, modernise infrastructure and rebuild supply chains.
At the same time, placing the steel company under a sovereign wealth structure signals a shift toward centralised asset management, with Government seeking to leverage scale in restructuring state enterprises.
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