The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Thursday said it was ready to help Zimbabwe craft a debt clearance strategy anchored on economic reforms.

This follows remarks by outgoing British Ambassador to Zimbabwe Catriona Laing that her country would support an interim staff-monitored program for Zimbabwe to quickly clear its arrears. Gerry Rice, Director of Communications Department at the IMF said,

…What I would say is we see the new administration of President Mnangagwa has expressed commitment to strong economic reforms and supporting reforms will require a comprehensive stabilization and structural reform program from the authorities and financial support from the international community to provide space for these reforms. Read more

Government has announced plans to expand Bulawayo Kraal Irrigation Project in Binga to 15 000 hectares with an estimated maize output of around 150 metric tonnes per annum in a bid to create more jobs and create export-led economic growth.

The Bulawayo Kraal Irrigation Project which is part of the Zambezi Green Valley (ZAGREVA) project is set for massive expansion which will transform it into Matabeleland North irrigation giant and make Binga an economic hub.

The planned expansion will see the hectares under cropping being increased to around 15 000 hectares. Read more

A business delegation from the United States is set for Harare from the 10th to the 20th of next month to explore prospects for cooperation in realising Zimbabwe’s vision of at middle income economy by 2030.

Years after the guns of the liberation war in Zimbabwe fell thousands of human, livestock and wildlife continue to be lost through landmines planted by the Smith regime to stop movement of people, hence the need to ensure the silent killers are removed to allow the people to get their lives back to normal again and utilise their land for food security and generating incomes. Read more

The Ministry of Finance and Economic Development has hinted to a number of currency reforms to be implemented within the shortest period, among them adopting a market based foreign currency exchange as well as a vigorous stance to revive the Monetary Policy Committee.

The new Finance Minister and Economic Development Professor Mthuli Ncube admits the country needs a stabilisation plan to be implemented within the shortest term to stabilise and ease the current macroeconomic pressures that are troubling the economy. Read more

RBZ Governor tells Bloomberg that Zimbabwe’s gold production has risen significantly by seventy percent in the past eight months producing about 25 tonnes by end of August vs eleven tonnes in 2017.

He also says that the gold is finding its way to international markets.He tells Bloomberg that Zimbabwe is receiving investors from the USA,UK,Germany and China.

Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe's governor sees a positive investment mood ▶️https://t.co/i5EG3XrTup pic.twitter.com/TigrAvaTCI

— Bloomberg TV (@BloombergTV) September 21, 2018

Speaking at the Standards Association of Zimbabwe (SAZ) Business Leaders Conference 2018 in Victoria Falls yesterday, Permanent Secretary in the Office of the President and Cabinet, Ambassador Stuart Comberbach a new short-term economic stabilisation plan is ready for Cabinet consideration.

Although he did not disclose the contents of the draft he said the two-year plan will be followed by two other five-year national development plans. Said Comberbach: Read more

Vice President Constantino Chiwenga has called for a policy change to open up the airspace, in order to allow competition and boost tourism.

Officially opening the Hlanganani/Sanganai World Tourism Expo in Bulawayo last Thursday, Chiwenga said

On the domestic front we have opened up the domestic airspace for other players and we have seen new airlines now competing on our domestic routes. Read more

New Minister of Finance and Economic Development Professor Mthuli Ncube has said that he will prioritise currency reforms as the current currency approach is not working. Speaking to the Sunday Mail, Ncube said

I am very clear that there have to be currency reforms and the (current) currency approach is not working.

In doing so, there are three choices that I will explore and pursue with urgency: One, adopt the US dollar only and remove the bond notes from circulation through a demonetisation process and also liberalise exchange controls.

Two, adopt the rand by negotiating to join the Rand Monetary Area, and this will close the gap in loss of competitiveness against our largest trading partner, South Africa. Read more

The South African economy on Tuesday slipped into a technical recession according to Bloomberg.

The latest economic data by the country’s statistics agency showed second quarter gross domestic product (GDP) declined by about -0.7 per cent, driven by the poor performance in key sectors, including agriculture, transport and retail businesses.

It is the first time since 2009 that the South African economy, the second largest in Africa after Nigeria, will be going into recession. Read more

Speaking to The Chronicle, Mr Warren Meares, a senior official at Chicken Inn confirmed they had ran out of chicken due to a countrywide shortage of chicken that had affected their supplier.

He said the shortage had not only affected Chicken Inn outlets in Bulawayo but nationwide. Read more