adminPatrick Ndowa (Enactus UZ president)
Sanctions have left a dark cloud hanging over Zimbabwe. Many citizens are under the yoke of hardships and poverty. Young entrepreneurs and informal traders have to continually adapt to the ever-changing socio-economic dynamics to bust sanctions. This means we always have to play catch-up as a country.
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Emerenziana Tekwania
(Plenty Group of Companies)
Profits are dwindling due to reduced demand for our products. Exports used to constitute 60 percent of our revenue but now they have dropped to 10 percent. The company has reduced its capacity to 30 percent because of the sanctions. We had 500 employees but now we have only 50. Some of our departments, like the engineering section, have closed. We used to make huge profits from trade shows here in Zimbabwe and abroad, but our products are now being shunned by customers because of sanctions.
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Thabo Marurenza
(Gokwe resident)
My late cousin worked for an engineering company that was affected by sanctions. He was laid off and never recovered from depression. He unfortunately passed away. His story is sad in that he left a widow who was unemployed. His children could not go to school until we stepped in to assist. I feel sanctions should be removed so that we get the same opportunities as people from other countries. Zimbabwe is lagging behind in terms of development.
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Precious Masakara
(college student)
Most youths are unemployed, and this has created conditions for criminal activities to thrive. Illicit foreign currency trading and proliferation of dangerous drugs are some of the challenges that have been spawned by the increased informalisation of the economy.
Even companies that are still open are not operating at levels that they ought to, and this substantially lowers the standards of living.
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Simbarashe
Nheweyembwa (student)
Sanctions imposed on our nation are making it difficult for us to trade freely with the world.
Some locally-based businesses are failing to attract foreign investors because of the inherent risk that is associated with trading with Zimbabwe, which is financially blacklisted by international financial institutions. This prevents these companies from expanding and absorbing the growing pool of college graduates like me. Equally, we cannot borrow money from international banks to grow our economy.
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Farirai Vutata (Hatfield resident)
As a young person living in Zimbabwe, I feel that ZDERA (Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act) sanctions have stifled the development of new industries.
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Gilson Bocho
(Concession resident)
Sanctions are the worst crime against humanity. What boggles the mind is that we see worse atrocities being committed by other countries, yet sanctions are not imposed on them. It only shows that the West has it out for Zimbabwe.
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Cde Roger Pote
(political analyst)
Sanctions are as good as the coronavirus. When the virus started, the world
never imagined the pervasive impact it would have. Sanctions on Zimbabwe have blocked direct trade with the West. Trade has to be conducted through middlemen and we cannot maximise on profits. A good example is our diamonds that are being sold for peanuts because the international market is wary of buying them. Zimbabwe has prime agriculture land but our youths are not able to receive international credit like other countries.
Online Reporter