an Eldis Resource
Zimbabwe's multi-layered crisis
Zimbabwe, the economic crisis and the collapse of social services
Authors:
Publisher:
Chr. Michelsen Institute, Norway, 2010
This article reviews the current economic and political circumstances in Zimbabwe, trying to figure out the way to get out of the current situation. The article suggests that the ruling party responded to the formation of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) in 1999 with ruthless violence. However, the deteriorating economic conditions that prevailed from the early 1990s onward put further pressures on the regime.
The author underlines that by 2008, the Zimbabwean economy had all the indicators of a country in severe distress. Specific findings include:
- the unbudgeted gratuities to War Veterans and sending Zimbabwean soldiers into the Congo resulted in large unreasonable expenditure
- the fast track agrarian reform and the violent campaigns undertaken by the government resulted in widespread human rights abuses
- agricultural sector is reeling from the fast track, the boycotts and sanctions; thus Zimbabwe now imports staple food to feed its population
- a major life-threatening for Zimbabweans is the discontinuous domestic supply of water and the breakdown of the country’s urban water system
- the economic crisis resulted in a massive collapse of the country’s social services sector
- while a role for selective sanctions and targeted measures may still be required, the policy drift must move toward increasing engagement around development assistance
- the future of democratic forces in Zimbabwe depends on their capacity to lead an economic recovery programme that will strengthen the country’s social base
- deepening crisis and continued sanctions is not advantageous to the opposition.
