Is Zimbabwe too small for Federalism?

by Ndzimu-unami Emmanuel Moyo

21 Jan 2013 at 11:50hrs | Views

I sometimes hear people claim that Zimbabwe is too small for federalism. But please look at the figures below in square kilometers:

Matebeleland South - 54172
Matebeleland North - 75025
Total Surface Area - 129197

Zimbabwe as a whole has a total surface area of over 350 000 square km. Now, take a look at the countries below:

Switzerland. 41 285
Belgium. 30 528
Jewish Israel. 20 770

Switzerland has 27 Cantons (Provinces), all self-governing. Israel has about 9 Districts, all self-governing. Belgium is also a federation. So I don't know what people mean when they say Zimbabwe is "too small" for Federalism or Devolution of Power.