eBusiness Weekly
Malvern Nkomo
Marketers Association of Zimbabwe (MAZ) is set to launch the Zimbabwe Association of Business Communicators (ZABC) next month in a bid to support, develop and connect public relations and communication practitioners in Zimbabwe.
The association mainly targets business practitioners, public relations practitioners, corporate communicators practitioners, public affairs practitioners and marketing communicators.
During a media briefing ZABC spokesperson, Gillian Rusike, said the association’s main thrust is to drive the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) agenda in businesses in order to keep up with the current global trends.
He also said the desire to upgrade professionalism and credibility in the business communication fraternity was one of the key drivers for the formation of the association.
“As MAZ our vision is to champion marketing excellency in the country and it is our duty to provide specialised professional services to all facets of marketing.
“Public relations and marketing are more like two sides of the same coin and we need to bridge that gap where they do not appear as if they co-exist.
“By coming up with this body, we will ensure that when it comes to value addition within the value chain of an organisation the two sides of the coin are speaking the same language,” said Rusike.
“The Zimbabwe Association of Business Communicators aims to be a welcoming community that supports, develops and connects public relations and communication practitioners in Zimbabwe and beyond.
“The Association has been birthed out of a desire to enhance professionalism and credibility in the business communication fraternity. We intend to foster excellence, recognition, skills development and synergies among our members. We will drive the sustainability agenda to attract capital, build investor confidence and promote stronger brand identity among Business Communicators,” he said.
“In keeping with current global trends in business, one of ZABC’s main thrusts is to drive the Environmental, Social, Governance agenda in the country. The reporting of the listed companies now requires reporting on issues to do with sustainability so our aim is to make sure that it syncs with the business communications.
“So the goal is to make ZABC members become the pinnacle and core drivers of sustainability within the organisation and ensure that public relations practitioners within organisations come and drive this agenda from a professional point of view,” said Rusike.
He also said the association will run on its own, handling its own affairs with a separate board.
“This is going to be a totally different pillar, with its own board and running its own affairs outside the affairs of the MAZ to ensure that there is specialisation.
“The board is already in place and will be announced at the official launch,” he said.
ZABC will officially be launched on October 3rd, 2023 at The Venue Avondale in Harare. The launch will be attended by business executives, Public Relations practitioners and government officials.
