The Zimbabwean business community stands at a crossroad. For too long, they have been trapped in a receive-only mindset, waiting for investors, seeking foreign capital, and allowing international brands to dominate their economy. The streets of Harare, Bulawayo, and Mutare are full of new businesses, food chains opening left, right, and center, yet the most common question from entrepreneurs remains the same: “Do you have investors?” This mindset is holding Zimbabwe back. Foreign brands expand aggressively into markets, while Zimbabwean businesses remain trapped within local ownership regulations that reinforce this culture of receiving instead of expanding outward.

Local ownership laws were designed to protect Zimbabwean businesses, but they have also contributed to a mentality of isolation, keeping entrepreneurs focused on controlling what is within rather than claiming space abroad. These regulations often assume that Zimbabwe must only guard against foreign dominance, rather than becoming dominant in foreign markets itself. The result? Zimbabwean companies fight for control over a limited local economy while global brands operate freely, making billions in Africa and sending their profits abroad.

Billions leave the country, and little comes back.

Currency externalization has long been a problem for Zimbabwe. With all things considered, externalization should be bidirectional. Zimbabwean businesses must go abroad, claim international markets, and bring foreign revenue home. Zimbabwe should not only be a consumer of international brands— she must become a producer of global brands. There is no reason why Chicken Inn should not be in London, why Bakers Inn bread should not be on supermarket shelves in the U.S., or why Zimbabwean coffee and tea should not be competing with Tim Hortons, Starbucks and Twinings globally. If we continue to think inward expansion, we will remain on the touch-line or as Investment Prostitutes. But if we dare to expand, we can turn Zimbabwean businesses into internationally recognized brands. KFC is in Zimbabwe! and folks gladly fill its coffers without hesitation.

History tells us that Africa was once the target of colonial expansion, with wealth and resources flowing from the continent into the hands of the first world. Cecil John Rhodes and others moved from the developed world into Africa, seizing opportunities, building empires, and expanding their economic influence. Today, the time has come for reverse colonization—not through political means, but through business expansion. Zimbabwean companies must move into the first world, take over markets, and dominate industries just as others once did to Africa.

In 1871, at the age of 18, Rhodes entered the diamond industry. Through strategic acquisitions and consolidations, he established De Beers Consolidated Mines in 1888, which, by 1891, controlled 90% of the world’s diamond production. Cecil John Rhodes’s ventures in southern Africa were financed through a combination of personal investments, strategic partnerships, and the formation of influential consortia.

A major key to global expansion lies in the Zimbabwean diaspora. Across the U.K., U.S., Canada, Australia, South Africa, and the UAE, millions of Zimbabweans already understand the markets, regulations, and consumer trends in the areas they live in. Instead of seeing them only as remittance senders, they must be mobilized as business expansion agents. Zimbabweans abroad must not only send money home but must be used to create businesses that take Zimbabwe to the world. They should be at the forefront of setting up franchises, negotiating distribution deals, and building international demand for Zimbabwean products. The diaspora is a powerful tool for expansion—if only Zimbabwean businesses would use it.

No company can conquer the world alone. It is time for Zimbabwean businesses to pool resources and work together. Cecil John Rhodes did not build his empire alone; he created The British South Africa Company, a consortium that raised funds, built networks, and expanded aggressively. Zimbabwean businesses must apply the same strategy—not to exploit, but to compete. Companies should form investment consortiums, raising capital for expansion into foreign markets. Strategic partnerships should be built with business leaders in the diaspora to penetrate international supply chains. Business hubs must be established in cities like Calgary, London, New York, Dubai, and Toronto to give Zimbabwean brands a global footprint. If we want to compete internationally, we must act collectively, strategically, and with urgency.

But waiting for investors is not a strategy! Zimbabwean entrepreneurs have been conditioned to wait for investment instead of creating it, to look inward instead of seeking international expansion. Is this a lingering effect of colonization and UDI (Unilateral Declaration of Independence), which forced businesses to operate within limited local markets instead of venturing outward like global brands do. Now is the time to act, to expand, and to take Zimbabwean businesses to the world. The world will not wait for Zimbabwe—the time to compete is now.

If the Chinese, Americans, and Europeans could come to Africa and take advantage of opportunities, why are Zimbabwean businesses not doing the same in their markets? Instead of debating who owns what inside Zimbabwe, we should be debating how many Zimbabwean brands are competing in the first world. The time has come to break this cycle of limitation and expand into the global market with confidence.

Visionary entrepreneurs, backed by strong investment networks, can achieve remarkable success

Cecil John Rhodes expanded his influence across Africa through the support of investors; Zimbabwean businesses can do the same in today’s global economy. With strategic investments, brands like Chicken Inn, Bakers Inn, and Zimbabwe’s agricultural sectors can thrive alongside major North American brands. The opportunity is now. Zimbabwean businesses must act with confidence, strategy, and determination to secure their place in the global economy.

All in all, Africa must break the Receive Culture – During his first term in office, U.S. President Donald Trump once said that African leaders “only know how to steal from their people instead of developing their own countries.” Whether we agree with Trump or not, his words carry an uncomfortable truth. Billions of dollars belonging to African elites sit in foreign bank accounts, idle.

Those who expand boldly create the most lasting impact. Africa was once a land of conquest, the Belgians, the British, the French, and the Portuguese moved in, seeking economic dominance, would it be a bad strategy for Africans to move out to seek economic dominance?