Rhodesian Model worked and it will work even better NOW

Zimbabwe needs to look at the model that worked and make it even better under sanctions. From the 1940 when the Rhodesian economy was booming the country had only one university and the focus of the then government was to create a workforce that was mostly dominated by technicians, apprentices and artisans as workers. The agricultural sector, rail service, air industry, mining, energy sector, health service did not need degreed individual to design, develop, build and implement the then model which was based on production, production and production for the nation.

These were basic fundamentals to economic growth which the Rhodesians successfully embraced and made a way of life during the time of white rule in the then Rhodesia. It took less than a century for the white antecedents to carve a modern, functioning, European-style society out of raw African bushveld making the then Rhodesia a jewel of Africa as expressed by Julius Mwalimu Nyerere of Tanzania. The growth of Rhodesia was based on identifying that to have a functioning economy there was a need to industrialise the country around the agriculture sector with the technicians, apprentices and artisans taking the leading role as the catalysts for economic growth.

What makes the growth of Rhodesia industralisation amazing is the Rhodesians only ran the country now known as Zimbabwe from 1964 to 1980 yet they were able to build the best economy in Africa during their 16 years. During that time Rhodesia was a country underworld sanctions which was imposed by all countries except South Africa and Portugal. The then Rhodesians were forced to survive and to greatly increase the country's industrial and economic output which the achieved successful. During that era the Rhodesians were able to manufacture their own vehicles, locomotives, weapons, and countless other essential products and items of a modern, first-world country. They utilized the vast resources of the country and in turn making RISCO (Now bankrupt ZISCO) the biggest steel producer in the continent. The Rhodesian period created the best educated Africans on the continent in the process producing the richest black middle class in the world. During this era of none stop economic growth Rhodesiaattracted emigrates worldwide due to the working ethics that the leadership had adopted yet they were in a war of liberation to remove the racist government that was in power.

With these working ethics and hardworking culture, there was no need to kill the goose that lays the golden eggs and this is what the late Robert Mugabe did by forcing both the blacks and minority white citizens to migrate taking away their skills and millions of Zimbabwean dollars after the black majority during his brutal rule of 37 years. In 1980 the then leader the late President Robert Mugabe believed the only way to empower the nation was through education and he provided education for all. This is now beginning to be a challenge in the new Zimbabwe because we now have a very well educated degreed "managers" work force but with very few to do the work. The technician, apprenticeship program is now as good as dead yet this was the most important employment driver during the Rhodesian era.

According to the 2006 Intelligent Quotient (IQ) is the 25th most intelligent country with an average IQ of 82 according to https://iq-research.info/en/average-iq-by-countrymaking us the 5th most intelligent nation on the African Continent. We have Zimbabweans occupying top positions in international companies across the continent beyond. This is because we have some the 2nd highest literacy rate on the African. With all this intellectual intelligence the time has come for Zimbabwe at the country to rule the world. It is not too late to revisit this model and panel beat it so that it can suit modern day Zimbabwe. We do not need to create a wheel, it is now a copy and paste. The infrastructure is still there even though it is battered. It can be repaired. Let us make Zimbabwe GREAT AGAIN.

Engineer Jacob Kudzayi Mutisi