The government of cash-strapped Zimbabwe has opened bids for a number of its state-owned enterprises (SOEs) – including its national airline, Air Zimbabwe, and power parastatal, Zesa Holdings – in a move to ease pressures on the budget and help its new interim president, Emmerson Mnangagwa, meet his promise of economic revival.
According to Reuters news agency, the country’s budget deficit hit $1.82 billion or 11.2% of GDP in 2017 from an initial target of $400 million, while its economy hardly grew in 2016.
The Minister of Finance, Terence Mukupe, said in a statement earlier this week that government was “diluting” its shareholding in up to eight of its SOEs and that it might, in some cases, completely divest its interests in some companies,
Air Zimbabwe, which currently runs four aircraft, is more than $300 million in debt while the railway operator, National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ), recently received a US$400-million recapitalisation from South Africa’s Transnet.
In 2016, Zesa Holdings saw a $224-million loss due to higher electricity import costs.
Do you think Zimbabwe will see an economic revival soon? Will the sale of its SOEs make a difference? What do you think needs to be done for Zimbabwe to see a sustainable economic turnaround?
We would like to use your comments – off or on the record – in a series of articles we are planning for our annual Zimbabwe feature in FTW. Please e-mail your views to adelem@nowmedia.co.za before 12 January and indicate whether your comments should be anonymous.
