ZANU PF Chief Whip and Gutu South legislator Pupurai Togarepi has called for an investigation into the high cost of cement and fertiliser in Zimbabwe, saying local consumers are paying almost double the prices charged in neighbouring countries.
Raising the matter as a point of national interest in Parliament on Tuesday, Togarepi called on Industry and Commerce Minister Nqobizitha Mangaliso Ndlovu to issue a ministerial statement explaining the significant price disparities along the local supply chain.
However, Speaker of Parliament Advocate Jacob Mudenda waived the request for an immediate ministerial statement.
Togarepi insisted that the issue required urgent attention, questioning why Zimbabweans were paying substantially more for essential agricultural inputs than consumers elsewhere in the region.
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"In the region, a bag of fertiliser is about US$25. In Zimbabwe today, that same bag is US$50," Togarepi said.
"So the difference, I do not understand why we have this. Is it cost-sharing? Are these people carrying costs that we don't know?"
The legislator said Zimbabwe previously enjoyed competitive fertiliser prices compared to other countries in the region and internationally, questioning how local farmers could remain profitable under the current cost structure.
"How do our people produce? We already have a high cost of production," he said.
He added that the price disparities were forcing Zimbabweans to source agricultural inputs from neighbouring countries despite the additional logistical expenses.
"That is why we have seen people buying from other countries. Why are they giving us competitive prices to save our people?" he asked.
Togarepi urged Parliament's Portfolio Committee on Industry and Commerce to investigate the entire value chain, including production, imports and distribution, to establish the factors behind the price differences.
He argued that even if Zimbabwe imported fertiliser from neighbouring countries, the products would remain cheaper than those available locally.
"I don't know how we can be helped by this Industry Committee if we cannot go to this place and put in our portfolio committee for Industry and Commerce for us to know the justification of these disparities. They are huge," he said.
The MP also raised concern over the cost of cement, saying prices had become increasingly unaffordable for ordinary Zimbabweans seeking to build homes.
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He said Parliament had a responsibility to protect consumers and ensure local manufacturers were not taking advantage of the market.
The concerns come as farmers prepare for the 2026/27 summer cropping season, with fertiliser remaining one of the biggest input costs for maize and other crops under both the Pfumvudza programme and commercial farming.
