Zimbabwe situation needs proper strategic development plan

We lack basic fundamentals to fulfil the benchmark of legitimacy and credibility. We need to correct a lot of things on the ground. We have so much potential, we simply need to pass the legitimacy test. Apparently we need a strategic development plan. We need to shift from activism and transform this nation into statesmanship. We simply need to change the way we do our politics and Governance style. We must learn to separate politics and development. The time for politicking is gone and this is time for development. Look at Kenya, Uhuru and Odinga, on the same table, lobbying for investors and rebranding Kenya. This is what we want in Zimbabwe. We must remain focused and build this nation together, remember we are doing this for the future generation. There is need for paradigm shift so that we can be able to develop our nation. We have so many inconsistencies on policy and Governance matters which must be corrected. Planning is key for implementations purposes and policy formulation. I would suggest that President E.D Mnangagwa should establish a planning ministry which must be responsible for policy matters. Our policies and strategies must be reviewed so that we can feed into what potential investors expect for them to come to Zimbabwe. Stability of any given economy depend on legitimacy, business confidence, role of markets and implementation of key reforms. We lack basic fundamentals to fulfil the requirements of legitimacy.

Investor confidence

What is that investors expect before making any commitment to our country? Do we have political stability? Do we have an investment plan in Zimbabwe? Have we gone through the benchmark of legitimacy? Is the issue of property rights addressed in our laws? Is the investor and the investment safe in Zimbabwe? Investor confidence is one of the key drivers of equity markets. The spread often precedes a turn in the stock market. You can measure the investor confidence's fear and greed by looking at the changing prices of treasuries, compared to that of high yield bonds (representing greed, or desperate reaching for income). As their returns converge or diverge, you can also feel the change of emotional temperature in the stock markets. What this basically means is that, investors need assurances of stable markets, prices and consistencies on laws that govern our country. They major into minors, what you may over rule or underestimate to them it means something. What that means to our Government is that, align your laws, repeal hostile laws, address the issue of reforms and come up with a proper economic and legal framework which is clear to investors who may want to come to Zimbabwe to invest in our country. Our Government should not be desperate for investment and this might jeopardize the little effort thy have put for re-engagement. What has happened to the previous investors who expressed interest to our country? What led to the few potential investors to leave the country? Does our current political environment favour us? What is it that we have to correct? Recently we have heard of one or two ministers who were soliciting for bribes to potential investors and this is a clear indication that we still have problems on how to address corruption. The minister is still in charge of his ministry.

IMF structural program

We are looking at how we have adjusted in terms of our expenditure, economic reforms, and the way we do business, our targeted revenue and expenditure, budget surplus, budget deficit. So basically I welcome the idea of IMF setting up an operational office in Zimbabwe to monitor our macroeconomics and structural adjustments programs. The fundamental question then lies, does our Government welcome the idea of IMF program, were we will be monitored how we use our expenditure and revenues? Are we prepared to eat what we kill? Macroeconomics (from the Greek prefix makro- meaning "large" and economics) is a branch of economics dealing with the performance, structure, behavior, and decision-making of an economy as a whole rather than individual markets. This includes national, regional, and global economies. Along with microeconomics, macroeconomics is one of the two most general fields in economics. Macroeconomists study aggregated indicators such as GDP, unemployment rates, national income, price indices, and the interrelations among the different sectors of the economy to better understand how the whole economy functions. Macroeconomists develop models that explain the relationship between such factors as national income, output, consumption, unemployment, inflation, savings, investment, international trade and international finance. In contrast, microeconomics is primarily focused on the actions of individual agents, such as firms and consumers, and how their behavior determines prices and quantities in specific markets. While macroeconomics is a broad field of study, there are two areas of research that are emblematic of the discipline: the attempt to understand the causes and consequences of short-run fluctuations in national income (the business cycle), and the attempt to understand the determinants of long-run economic growth (increases in national income).

Launch of a strategic Development plan

There is need for Mnangagwa's Government call for an indaba on economic policies and investment plan on how to deal with Zim's situation. Remove all draconic laws, repeal them, set up thematic economic committees which will then put ideas together, then design a proper economic framework which should then be transformed into a "second national development plan" in line with the second republican of Zimbabwe. Zim can manage its own problems if we deal with human rights issues, rule of law, restore confidence, deal with legitimacy issues, stop human rights violations and all the brutality which dent the country's image and then come up with the second development plan.

Progress on political dialogue

Dialogue is key and we hope for the best. It is critical for the leadership of this country to put Zimbabwe first. We have a future to bear. Look at Kenya as a case study of how they have managed to deal with their hostile politics. It is key for Mnangagwa and Chamisa to come to the negotiating table and deal with decisive politics and put Zimbabwe first. Look for a neutral venue, and consider a credible guarantor, the likes of Chisanno, Ian Khama, Rupiah Banda and Obasanjo such characters can mediate very well and come up with a proper Global Political Agreement which can deal with economic and political reforms. There is need for progress on the issue of dialogue so that Zimbabwe can restore its political and economic integrity.

Tinashe Eric Muzamhindo writes in his personal capacity as an academic who is studying Doctor of Philosophy at Women's University of Africa ( Development Studies) and he can be contacted at tinamuzala@gmail.com