By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Another neighbour has stepped in to help Zimbabwe step back from economic precipice caused by years of mismanagement and international sanctions worsened by violent protests against high fuel prices in January.
On March 12, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa visited Harare and promised his country’s assistance to Zimbabwe’s economic revival, but within its means.
He urged foreign donors to support a country whose economy has been squeezed by a severe dollar crunch, according to Reuters.
South Africa had in January rejected Zimbabwe’s request for a $1.2 billion loan to reboot industry.
But in February, Botswana agreed to loan $600 million to Zimbabwe, which led to Harare’s optimism of a return to the warmth of international relations, especially with the West.
On March 4, United States President Donald Trump extended by one year sanctions against Zimbabwe, saying the policies of President Emmerson Mnangagwa still posed an “unusual and extraordinary” threat to American foreign policy.
Regardless, Harare said it would keep talking to Washington and the European Union (EU) to remove the sanctions imposed since the early 2000s because of former President Robert Mugabe’s human rights violations.
Ramaphosa canvasses ‘meaningful support’ for Zimbabwe
The scarcity of U.S. dollars – to which the Zimbabwean dollar is pegged – stokes shortages of fuel, drugs, and food.
And it chokes an economy yet to recover from the disastrous days of Mugabe, who ruled for 37 years until November 2017.
Zimbabwe also faces a severe drought this year.
Reuters reports that Ramaphosa told a meeting in Harare that Mnangagwa’s government deserved support from the rest of the world to reboot its economy.
“South Africa, Mr President, stands ready to render support to Zimbabwe within our means in your quest for economic renewal,” Ramaphosa said, without giving details on whether this would entail financial help.
“We want to see meaningful support being given by international development partners to Zimbabwe because Zimbabwe does deserve the support that the world can give.”
Rampahosa also repeated his previous call for sanctions against Zimbabwe to be lifted.
Zimbabwe says U.S. sanctions throttle its ability to access funding from lenders like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank and raise its political risk profile.
South Africa is Zimbabwe’s largest trading partner and home to millions of Zimbabweans who flocked to the country amid an economic meltdown during Mugabe’s rule.
Mnangagwa pledged to protect South African businesses operating in Zimbabwe, which range from mining to manufacturing to construction.
