admin
Tawanda Zinyama
THAT sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe have caused indescribable suffering to the people of Zimbabwe is incontestable.
What is required, however, is for Zimbabweans to unite and collectively call for the unconditional removal of these devilish sanctions.
Remember, sanctions on Zimbabwe are just a retaliatory measure for taking back the land.
It is because of the Fast-Track Land Reform Programme of the early 2000s that the United States of America (US) imposed illegal sanctions on Zimbabwe under the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act (ZDERA) of 2001.
Added to that are Executive Sanctions (Executive Order 13288) of March 2003, renewable on a yearly basis.
The European Union (EU) introduced its own sanctions in February 2002.
These sanctions have made it difficult for the Government of Zimbabwe and private companies to access lines of credit, debt relief and directly affects the country’s ability to meet its fiduciary obligations.
This has resulted in colossal unemployment and substantial upheaval through the near-collapse of public health institutions, an economic crunch and other associated problems.
Zimbabweans must understand that economic sanctions are used to promote European and American foreign policy objectives.
The goal of sanctions on Zimbabwe is to force the country to change its philosophy and ideology regarding decolonisation and economic emancipation.
So far, these sanctions have succeeded in hampering Government’s efforts to implement its development agenda, but the New Dispensation led by President Mnangagwa has been able to come up with home-grown solutions to speed up development in the country.
Balance of payment
Zimbabwe’s Balance of Payment position has deteriorated significantly since the introduction of sanctions.
This adverse development has worsened the country’s creditworthiness and affected its international financial risk profile.
Because of sanctions, the country has endured the twin evils of inadequate export performance and reduced capital inflows.
The foreign exchange shortages severely constrained the country’s capacity to meet foreign payment obligations and finance critical imports such as drugs, grain, raw materials, fuel and electricity.
This has affected the poor and disadvantaged sections of the Zimbabwean community.
Consequently, traditional sources of external finance from International Financial Institutions (IFIs) dried up.
Zimbabwe has not received financial support from the African Development Bank since 1998, and from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank since 1999 and 2001 respectively.
In essence, the IFIs stopped supporting Zimbabwe by suspending balance of payment support, technical assistance, voting and related rights by the IMF, and declaration of illegibility to access fund resources.
In 2017, CBZ was slapped with a staggering US$3,8 billion fine by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) for facilitating transactions on behalf of a bank which was blacklisted under ZDERA.
The penalty was only reduced to US$385 million after mitigation and negotiations, before eventually being cancelled this year.
Agriculture
Agriculture is the pillar of Zimbabwe’s economy, with potential to provide employment and income to over 60 percent of the population, supplying 60 percent of raw materials required by the manufacturing sector and contributing 40 percent of the total export earnings.
Sanctions have culminated in lack of development, rehabilitation and modernisation of production and marketing infrastructure.
This has diminished productivity and access to markets.
Sanctions have affected the livelihoods of millions of households owing to lower agricultural yields and this derailed Zimbabwe’s quest to attain the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) against poverty and hunger.
Industry
Sanctions comprehensively affected this sector through high costs of borrowing, tight liquidity conditions, outdated technology, continued use of antiquated plant and machinery, declining agriculture output, low aggregate demand and power outages.
Lack of long-term financing precluded the sector from accessing the much-needed capital injections for retooling.
This has eroded the viability and competitiveness of the sector.
Health, water, sanitation infrastructure
Water and sanitation infrastructure virtually collapsed, as water treatment plants were not upgraded to match increased demand.
Some health facilities that were under construction like provincial and district hospitals and were being financed through the World Bank loan facility could not be completed soon after the imposition of sanctions as donors withdrew their funds.
Government failed to raise enough funds to complete the projects, leaving some facilities incomplete.
Treatable diseases have become life-threatening problems in Zimbabwe because of perennially inadequate supplies of medicines and medical and pharmaceutical equipment.
As a result, a health worker in Zimbabwe is always demoralised and demotivated by
To Page 8
Online Reporter