Zimbabwe must urgently recalibrate its national discourse on debt sustainability and borrowing quality, placing it within the broader context of a global financial system structurally skewed against African economies, Deputy
Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion, David Mnangagwa, has said.
Addressing delegates during the Zimbabwe Economic Development Conference (Zedcon) 2025 in Bulawayo, which runs from September 16 to 19, Deputy Minister Mnangagwa issued a clarion call for a paradigm shift in how debt is understood, managed and deployed.
"African countries are already skewed by the global financial architecture," he said.
Follow us on WhatsApp | LinkedIn for the latest headlines
He challenged the prevailing orthodoxy that views borrowing through a narrow lens of fiscal restraint, urging instead a development-centric approach that recognises the strategic imperative of infrastructure-led growth.
"We need to go in further and interrogate the quality of our borrowing more than anything," he told the high-level gathering.
Deputy Minister Mnangagwa warned against the uncritical adoption of externally driven recommendations that fail to reflect Zimbabwe's unique developmental needs.
"There is a need to borrow for some infrastructure that could pay for itself. How does that add to your debt framework and your debt profile?"
"So, when we have these figures and we recommend that we stop borrowing, we are feeding into a global narrative that is already skewed against us as Africans, as Zimbabweans."
He advocated for "quality borrowing" targeted investments in transformative projects that yield long-term returns and self-sustainability.
"If we are to borrow beyond the limits, let us borrow for one, two, three, four projects, because this is quality borrowing that will essentially pay for itself."
Deputy Minister Mnangagwa urged African nations to resist externally imposed economic limits that perpetuate underdevelopment.
"We need to expand further and contextualise our solutions to make sure that we do not put ourselves in a cage and confirm what everyone wants to feed in as far as the African debt narrative is concerned."
With Zimbabwe unable to access funding from the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and other Western institutions due to sanctions, the Government has intensified domestic resource mobilisation, channelling internally raised funds into roads, dams, schools, clinics, and clean water provision.
Turning to Zimbabwe's strategic next medium development blueprint, Deputy Minister Mnangagwa spotlighted the National Development Strategy 2 (NDS2) as a transformative vehicle.
"Let's go further. NDS2 is meant to leapfrog us. We are meant to transform, and we can move 20 years within a space of just five years."
The deputy minister called for bold, fact-based policy reform.
"Honest and robust engagements grounded in facts and empirical evidence" are essential, he said.
Held under the theme "Macroeconomic and Sectoral Policies for Broad-Based Economic Transformation," Zedcon 2025 convenes policymakers, academics, and private sector leaders to chart Zimbabwe's path toward Vision 2030.
"As a nation, it is critical that policy frameworks actively promote structural economic transformation encompassing industrialisation, job creation and poverty alleviation," he said.
He underscored the importance of inclusive dialogue.
"Candid and constructive dialogue is a service not only to each other but to our beloved nation."
Deeper collaboration with research institutions, the deputy minister said, was also critical.
"Research and academic institutions must be integral partners in this endeavour, contributing actionable and feasible insights derived from rigorous academic and empirical studies."
Further, he emphasised the need for sectoral alignment.
"Sectoral policies are pivotal in catalysing economic growth and sustainable development."
Zedcon 2025 will also explore regional and global integration strategies, including AfCFTA and diaspora investment policies.
"Added focus will be placed on diaspora investment policies, regional integration under the African Continental Free Trade Area and harnessing their potential to drive sustained economic transformation."
Echoing President Mnangagwa's rally call "Nyika inovakwa nevene vayo/Ilizwe lakhiwa ngabanikazi balo" the deputy minister said: "Broad-based economic transformation in the face of rapid global change necessitates bold, domestic innovative macroeconomic and sectoral policy frameworks."
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
Reflecting on Zedcon 2024, Professor Ashok Chakravarti, chief advisor to the Ministry of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion, noted the annual conference's tangible positive impact.
"Those papers have been useful and put into thinking by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe and the Ministry of Finance.
"You can now see the stability in the economy since the beginning of this year in terms of exchange rate, control of money supply and inflation."
He cited a landmark policy shift in carbon credit revenue sharing, revised from a 70-30 split to a more equitable 50-50 model as a direct outcome of Zedcon deliberations.
"It was found to be unreasonable and amended to 50-50," said Prof Chakravarti.
Beyond monetary reforms, Zedcon 2024 highlighted progress in the energy sector and environmental policy, setting the stage for deeper innovation in 2025.
Delegates said as the country prepares for the rollout of NDS2, Zedcon 2025 stands not merely as a conference, but as a crucible for shaping Zimbabwe's economic destiny, driven by bold ideas, strategic borrowing and homegrown solutions.
