Vincent Gono Day Editor
FOR decades, China’s rapid economic rise was synonymous with heavy industry, fossil-fired power and thickening urban smog.
Today, however, China is engineering a massive green pivot demonstrating that large-scale ecological restoration and economic growth do not have to be mutually exclusive.
From transforming arid deserts into thriving carbon sinks through ambitious afforestation campaigns to dominating global clean-energy supply chains, China’s transition offers a compelling, albeit complex, blueprint for sustainable development.
For emerging economies and developing countries such as Zimbabwe, the country’s evolving model provides vital lessons on how targeted state investment, land rehabilitation and green industrial policy can turn environmental challenges into engines of long-term resilience.
In this interview our Day Editor, Vincent Gono (VG) speaks with Mr Simon Masanga (SM), Permanent Secretary for Environment, Climate and Wildlife, about how Zimbabwe can strengthen environmental resilience and advance a green, climate-resilient economy.
Mr Masanga discusses lessons from China’s reforestation and urban greening programmes, the potential for renewable energy and smart grids and the policies, financing and coordination needed to deliver lasting results.
VG: What strategies can Zimbabwe adopt from China’s large-scale reforestation and urban greening campaigns to enhance its environmental resilience?
SM: Zimbabwe can draw valuable lessons from China’s large-scale ecological restoration programmes by adopting a landscape-based approach. This should combine reforestation, afforestation, catchment protection and urban greening under clearly defined national targets.
China’s reforestation record can be compared to a disciplined national savings scheme. Over four decades, the country made modest but sustained annual investments in tree planting, supported by stable financing and firm accountability.
Those efforts accumulated over time and reshaped the national landscape. For Zimbabwe, the key lesson is not simply to plant on a large scale, but to maintain consistent financing, monitor seedling survival and sustain the work over the long term.
Two programmes are particularly relevant: the Three-North Shelterbelt Programme, widely known as the Great Green Wall, which helped combat desertification across China’s arid north; and the Grain for Green Programme, which converted marginal sloping farmland to forest and grassland while providing participating households with grain and cash compensation. The latter is especially instructive because it addressed the livelihood costs of restoration by compensating households for income lost during the establishment period.
Zimbabwe should secure and ring-fence funding for restoration rather than rely solely on annual budget allocations, which can fluctuate with fiscal conditions. The Forestry Commission’s experience with the Afforestation Fund, discussed below, demonstrates both the value and vulnerability of dedicated levies.
Accountability should be based on seedling survival, not just planting numbers. China progressively shifted its reporting towards measuring the area of trees surviving after a defined establishment period. This is a more meaningful measure of success, and one that the Forestry Commission already promotes through its research stations.
Restoration should also be built around community incentives, secure land tenure and tangible benefits for households that bear the opportunity cost of converting land to forest. Programmes should be anchored in long-term national targets that extend beyond political and budgetary cycles, with consistent monitoring through remote sensing and ground verification.
Zimbabwe already has frameworks that can help apply these lessons, including the National Tree Planting Programme, its commitments under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework — including the 30 by 30 target — and its Nationally Determined Contributions under the Paris Agreement.
In line with Vision 2030, National Development Strategy 2 (NDS 2), the National Climate Policy and the Forestry Policy, priority should be given to restoring degraded forests, wetlands, riverbanks and critical watersheds. This would improve water security, reduce land degradation and strengthen climate resilience. Scaling up community-based natural resource management, agroforestry and benefit-sharing mechanisms would also help ensure local ownership and sustainability.
Finally, measurable restoration targets, robust monitoring systems and a link to the carbon markets policy framework could help secure carbon finance for implementation. Together, these measures would advance Zimbabwe’s biodiversity, land-restoration and climate-adaptation goals while contributing to a green and resilient economy.
VG: How can urban green spaces, such as parks and green roofs, be integrated into Zimbabwe’s urban planning to mitigate the urban heat island effect and improve air quality?
SM: Urban greening should be mainstreamed into municipal planning frameworks and master plans as a climate-change mitigation and adaptation measure, as well as a public-health intervention.
Consistent with NDS 2, the National Climate Policy and Sustainable Development Goal 11 on Sustainable Cities and Communities, local authorities should incorporate mandatory green-space standards, urban forests, green belts, roadside tree planting and permeable surfaces into development plans.
Green roofs, vertical gardens and climate-smart landscaping using indigenous and drought-tolerant species should be promoted, particularly in high-density urban areas. Vegetated buffers around industrial zones and major transport corridors could improve air quality while helping to reduce the urban heat island effect.
Sustainable maintenance programmes, supported by public-private partnerships and community participation, will be essential to ensuring these initiatives remain effective over the long term.
VG: What opportunities exist for Zimbabwe to invest in and develop renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind and hydroelectric power, similar to China’s initiatives?
SM: Zimbabwe is well positioned to accelerate investment in renewable energy, particularly solar power, given its abundant solar resources. In line with Vision 2030, NDS 2, the third-generation Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC 3) and the National Renewable Energy Policy, the country can expand utility-scale solar projects, distributed generation systems, mini-grids and solar-powered productive activities in agriculture, mining and manufacturing.
While the Forestry Commission does not deal directly with renewable energy generation, the broader energy transition intersects with its mandate through the use of wood fuel. Tobacco curing, together with household energy demand, is a significant driver of deforestation, particularly in communal and resettlement areas where the tobacco sector has expanded.
China’s afforestation experience reinforces a solution the Forestry Commission has long advocated: establishing fast-growing fuel wood woodlots, principally of eucalyptus and comparable species.
These could sustainably supply energy for tobacco curing and households while easing pressure on natural woodlands.
This work has historically been financed through the Afforestation Fund, supported by a levy on the tobacco sector. The Fund has faced administrative and disbursement challenges. Its effective operation, transparent governance and consistent reinvestment in woodlot establishment remain important to addressing the wood-energy dimension of the climate response. The Forestry Commission would welcome renewed engagement on strengthening this instrument.
Zimbabwe can also learn from China’s Sponge City and National Forest City initiatives, which incorporated green infrastructure into planning rather than treating it as landscaping added after development. This principle is relevant to Zimbabwe’s urban planning.
In partnership with local authorities and planning bodies, several measures could be considered:
Require green-space ratios in new residential and commercial developments, enforced through planning and building approvals.
Protect and rehabilitate existing urban woodlands, wetlands and tree-lined avenues, including green spaces in cities such as Harare and Bulawayo that are under pressure from infill development.
Promote green roofs and vegetated walls on public and commercial buildings, using rates rebates or faster approvals where feasible.
Select suitable indigenous and adapted species for urban planting, drawing on the Forestry Commission’s expertise to ensure drought tolerance and low water demand.
The Forestry Commission could support these measures through its research stations and Tree Seed Centre, providing guidance on species selection, propagation and establishment.
There are also opportunities to develop small hydro-power projects and conduct targeted wind-resource assessments to identify potential future investments. Promoting local manufacturing, assembly and maintenance of renewable energy technologies could strengthen domestic value chains, create green jobs and support industrialisation. Zimbabwe is also working to move up the lithium value chain — from mining to battery production — instead of exporting raw ore.
Finally, climate finance, blended financing instruments and strategic partnerships will be important for scaling up renewable energy deployment and improving national energy security.
VG: What steps can Zimbabwe take to develop and implement smart grid systems that enhance energy efficiency and facilitate the integration of renewable energy into the national grid?
SM: Zimbabwe should pursue a phased modernisation of its electricity infrastructure to support greater renewable energy penetration and improve system efficiency. This aligns with the objectives of the National Renewable Energy Policy.
Priority actions include conducting a comprehensive grid-readiness assessment, upgrading transmission and distribution networks, deploying smart meters and introducing advanced monitoring and control systems.
Energy storage, demand-side management programmes and time-of-use tariffs would enhance grid flexibility and reliability. Strengthening grid codes for renewable energy integration, while investing in technical skills, digital technologies and cybersecurity, will help ensure a resilient and future-ready electricity system.
VG: What policies and incentives are necessary to encourage the transition from fossil fuels to cleaner energy sources in Zimbabwe?
SM: The transition to a low-carbon economy requires a supportive policy and investment framework that provides certainty for investors and consumers.
In line with Vision 2030, NDS 2, the National Renewable Energy Policy and Zimbabwe’s NDC commitments, as expressed in the NDC 3.0 Country Statement, the Government should strengthen fiscal incentives.
These could include tax exemptions, duty rebates and concessional financing for renewable energy technologies.
Net metering, competitive renewable energy procurement mechanisms and clear power-purchase agreements would help stimulate private-sector investment.
Policies that promote energy efficiency, clean cooking technologies and sustainable household energy solutions would reduce dependence on biomass and fossil fuels while improving public health and environmental outcomes.
Transparent regulatory processes and predictable investment conditions will be essential to attracting long-term investment in the sector.
VG: What challenges does Zimbabwe face in implementing large-scale greening and smart-energy projects and how can they be addressed?
SM: Implementation is constrained by limited financial resources, inadequate technical capacity, infrastructure deficits, competing land-use demands and challenges in sustaining projects over time. The obstacles to large-scale greening and restoration are considerable, but manageable.
Addressing these constraints will require stronger mobilisation of domestic and international climate finance, expanded public-private partnerships and increased access to technology transfer.
In line with NDS 2, coordination across the environment, energy, local government and planning sectors should be strengthened to improve policy coherence and implementation. Long-term maintenance plans, community participation, benefit-sharing arrangements and robust monitoring should be built into project design from the outset.
Investment in research, data systems, digital technologies and human-capital development will further strengthen Zimbabwe’s capacity to deliver green growth and climate-resilient development.
