Online Reporter
Judith Phiri and Nqobile Bhebhe, Zimpapers Business Hub
ZIMBABWE is on the cusp of an economic golden era, Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube has said.
Delivering a keynote address at the 2026 National Budget Breakfast Meeting in Bulawayo, Prof Ncube said Government was focused on stabilising the economy and intensifying efforts to ease the cost of doing business.
He told business leaders and policymakers that Government is targeting a single-digit inflation environment in ZiG by the first quarter of 2026, a milestone last achieved in 1997.
🔴LIVE: Finance Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube headlines Post-Budget Breakfast Meeting in Bulawayo
“This is the beginning of the golden era for Zimbabwe. We are at the cusp for the first time in 32 years, and I declare that,” said Prof Ncube.
He said Government was also preparing a comprehensive financial and banking sector strategy aligned with Vision 2030, aimed at supporting long-term economic transformation.
The Minister emphasised the need to rekindle industrial growth and strengthen value chains, while calling on banks to play a leading role in driving the development of an offshore financial services sector.
Prof Ncube said the 2026 National Budget is firmly anchored on the pillars of the National Development Strategy 2 (NDS2), adding that NDS1 had delivered results, with key targets successfully met.
He commended several value chains that performed strongly under NDS1, including iron and steel, oil extraction, dairy, cotton and clothing, leather and textiles, as well as the minerals sector.
The meeting was hosted by Zimpapers, the country’s largest integrated media group, in collaboration with the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI), and attracted leading voices from business and the financial sector to unpack the implications of the 2026 National Budget.
The high-level engagement comes a few weeks after Prof Ncube presented the 2026 National Budget, themed “Enhancing Drivers of Economic Growth and Transformation Towards Vision 2030.”
The first edition of the Post-Budget Breakfast Meeting was held in Harare last week.
