Online Reporter
Thupeyo Muleya, Beitbridge Bureau
THE United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has launched the Equanomics initiative in Zimbabwe, a programme designed to transform fiscal policy and public finance into tools for advancing gender equality.
Equanomics is a UNDP initiative that combines “equal” and “economy” to dismantle economic systems that perpetuate gender inequality and promote economic fairness for all.
The programme works through three key areas: developing gender-responsive fiscal policies and tax systems, expanding and investing in care work and services and generating evidence and data to inform policy.
By integrating gender equality into fiscal policies and financial frameworks, Equanomics aims to achieve equal economic opportunities for women and align finance with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
In a statement yesterday, the UNDP Zimbabwe said the launch took place during the 2025 Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF) in Bulawayo, recently.
“The event was attended by more than 100 stakeholders from Government, civil society, academia and the private sector, convened to explore practical pathways to embed gender considerations into economic governance,” said the UNDP Zimbabwe.
Among those who attended the event were the Minister of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development, Senator Monica Mutsvangwa; Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Dr Mavis Sibanda, senior officials from the Ministry of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion, Ministry of Energy and Power Development, UNDP Zimbabwe deputy resident representative, Mr Lealem Dinku, Small and Medium
Enterprises Development Corporation (SMEDCO) and the Bulawayo City Council officials.
“The participants examined pressing issues including gender-responsive budgeting and strategies for institutional adoption, tax justice and equity with proposals for gender-sensitive tax reforms, simplified tax regimes for women informal traders and SMEs,” said the UNDP Zimbabwe.
“Another issue was centred on regional trade frameworks, including extending the SADC Simplified Trade Facility to integrate gender-specific quotas and data gaps, with calls for Zimstat to strengthen gender-disaggregated data collection to inform evidence-based policy.”
Experts also highlighted how regressive tax measures, such as VAT on essential goods like period products and limited public investment in social infrastructure, exacerbate economic inequality and deepen women’s unpaid care burdens.
Mr Dinku said despite noting progress in human development, entrenched economic disparities endure —disproportionately affecting women, girls and other disadvantaged groups.
National co-ordinator for Tax for SDGs, Mr Melusi Tshuma, said the Equanomics will reshape Zimbabwe’s fiscal landscape.
He said the initiative seeks to reform tax policies and public expenditures to reflect gender equity, introduce gender-responsive budgeting and gender tagging in national frameworks.
Mr Tshuma said the programme will help to promote transparency, accountability, and inclusive fiscal governance, establish a coalition for gender-responsive economies and champion the gender equality seal for public institutions.
“By uniting the Ministry of Finance, Zimra, the Ministry of Women Affairs and civil society voices, Equanomics aims to forge a new fiscal compact that tackles women’s poverty, dismantles economic discrimination, and builds resilience for inclusive and sustainable development,” he said.
“Equanomics represents more than a technical reform; it is a movement to align fiscal governance with the principles of justice, equality, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).”
