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'Economy Mirrors War Ravaged Economy'

Zimbabwe Standard (Harare)
NEWS
April 21, 2003
Posted to the web April 21, 2003

By Our Own Staff

THE opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) has equated the damage done
to Zimbabwe's economic fabric through mismanagement by the Zanu PF government,
to a post-war situation in which immediate reconstruction is usually needed by
the administration coming into power
Tendai Biti, the party's secretary for economic affairs, told Standard Business
that the dislocation of economic fundamentals in Zimbabwe mirrored that of a
war-ravaged economy
This situation, Biti said, had compelled the economic affairs committee he
heads in the MDC, to draw up an "Audit and Options" paper to carry out an audit
of the national economy as it stands right now
The party's Bold Realistic Innovative Development Growth and Employment
Strategy, commonly referred to as "BRIDGE", was crafted two years ago as an
economic recovery and stabilisation plan aimed at ending the vicious cycle of
poverty and job insecurity, among its other targets
The audit and options paper was presented to the party's national executive
last weekend and was warmly received
"Our economy is actually rapidly sinking into a scenario found only in
countries that have gone through war...The situation we are witnessing right
now is akin to the one that existed in Europe after the Second World War," said
Biti
"You can't stabilise a situation whereby the per-capita income of a Zimbabwean
is less than US$40, compared to that of a Tswana whose per-capita income is
US$2 000. This is the real problem we face as an incoming government," said
Biti
Tapiwa Mashakada, the party's shadow minister of finance, added: "You can't
look at orthodox economic measures alone because they can't adequately redress
the structural distress." Although the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries
(CZI) is carrying out an audit of the manufacturing sector, preliminary reports
say more than 500 companies have closed shop during the last two years
Formal sector employment has declined by more than 25% over the past two years
with informal sector opportunities declining even faster. This has been
reflected in the loss of more than 400 000 jobs
Domestic and foreign debt continues to balloon and some multilateral lenders
such as the International Monetary Fund are now even considering suspending
Zimbabwe
Foreign currency inflows have dwindled to a trickle as exports have decreased
substantially due to many big companies relocating to neighbouring countries or
closing shop as a result of the harsh operating environment.

   

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