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This article provides information about the Zimbabwe’s economic development policies of 1980s:
In 1980, Zimbabwe embarked on a programme of post-war reconstruction, which was supported by some foreign donors. In general terms, the reconstruction was successful as the economy was re-capitalised and reintegrated into the world economy.
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During the past two decades, Zimbabwe undertook several economic reform programmes. In October 1990, the Zimbabwe government succumbed to Western donor pressure and agreed to implement the five-year Economic Structural Adjustment Programme (ESAP) as a response to the economic crisis, which had been afflicting the country since the 1980s. The measures introduced were:
i. Removal of price controls;
ii. Removal of wage controls;
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iii. Reduction of government expenditure;
iv. A 40% devaluation of the Zimbabwean dollar;
v. Removal of subsidies on basic consumer goods;
vi. Liberalising the foreign currency allocation system;
vii. Removal of protection of non-productive import substituting industries and increased profit remittance abroad; and
viii. A radical restructuring of the various parastatals and other public enterprises.
Subsequently, in early 1991, the Zimbabwean government announced the Framework for Economic Reform (1991-95), which set out a time frame for reducing support to parastatals. The objective was the implementation of programmes for improving efficiency and management, as well as commercialisation and privatisation of public enterprises. Furthermore, in 1998, the Zimbabwe government launched the second stage of its economic structural adjustment programme, the Zimbabwe Programme for Economic and Social Transformation (ZIMPREST). ZIMPREST outlined macroeconomic reforms through to the year 2000.
The plan envisaged a real annual GDP growth of 6% until 2000 and a creation of 44,000 new jobs per year. To achieve such targets, savings and investments were expected to reach at least 23% of the GDP and the budget deficit reduced to fewer than 5%. ZIMPREST also sought improvements in the quality of democratic institutions; the pursuit of good governance; and the elimination of corruption. Thus political conditionalities were added to ZIMPREST.