Foreign firms must surrender shares to Zimbabweans - Mugabe

Opening a new session of parliament after disputed elections in July, Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe vowed to press ahead with an empowerment drive to force foreign firms to surrender majority shares to local partners.

"The indigenisation programme is to be pursued with renewed vigour," Mugabe said.

He vowed to make Zimbabweans "significant stakeholders and not mere bystanders to the running of the national economy".

The controversial indigenisation law was first implemented in 2010, forcing foreign companies to cede 51 per cent shares to Zimbabwean partners. The law has so far been applied to mines. Retailers are next in line.

Critics say the law will benefit Mugabe's allies and scare away foreign investment at a time when the country is grappling with massive joblessness.

Mugabe, 89 and in power since 1980, won another five-year term in elections on July 31 which were dismissed by his main rival, Morgan Tsvangirai, as a fraud.