Leakages cost Zimbabwe $1.8 billion

Government will roll out measures to plug leakages, including that of gold and other precious stones, which has prejudiced the country of an estimated $1,8 billion annually, a Cabinet minister has said.

Minerals account half of the country's annual export revenue, with Gold and platinum accounting for half of total annual export earnings.

Gold alone accounted for more than 51 percent of the country's export earnings between 2009 and 2014.

Gold was the second biggest export earner after platinum ($574 million) at $564 million in 2014.