Living Zimbabwe

26/06/2025

Zimbabwe’s farming fallout 25 years on: Deal or no deal?

Some white farmers accept compensation 25 years after land reform began - others fight on.

23/06/2025

How a self-styled knight giving away cars and wads of cash got people talking

Some are beguiled by the Zimbabwean tycoon's generosity, others alarmed about the source of his wealth.

13/04/2025

The Zimbabwean singer who found fame in China – and obscurity at home

Jo Stak used to sing in Mandarin and get stopped by fans on the streets of Shanghai. That changed when he came home.

28/03/2025

Healing or Hustle? Smuggled Meds Are Big Draw in Zimbabwe’s Hidden Markets

Sure, the pills may be expired — or fake. But customers flock to the illicit market anyway, saying they have no other choice.

22/03/2025

Sent to Coventry: how Bach’s power helped Zimbabwean’s shock IOC win

Poll result defied candidates’ calculations and illustrated outgoing president’s influence but change may yet come

17/03/2025

How are you finding the current economic climate?

“As long as the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) doesn't have sufficient foreign currency liquidity to meet the demand, businesses and individuals will still resort to parallel market pricing – this policy is nice but not enforceable.

“The RBZ has no stamina to insist on this! The market may comply in the immediate to short term but medium to long run will see compounding disparities as a result.

“In addition The RBZ is saying only banks should set the exchange rate, but in practice, many businesses in Zimbabwe use alternative rates to hedge against currency instability.

“Without strict enforcement, businesses might continue to set their own rates based on market realities rather than the official rate.

“Many businesses and individuals lack confidence in Zimbabwe’s formal banking system due to past currency volatility, inflation, and policy shifts.

“Unless the RBZ ensures consistent access to foreign currency at transparent rates, businesses may continue relying on informal markets.

“This policy is not enforceable and any attempts to rail road the economy by forcing these bank rates will be detrimental as it will erode confidence and trust.”

Economist Chenayi Mutambasere commenting on the RBZ’s insistence that the exchange rate be determined by authorised dealers (banks) in the interbank market, based on the willing-buyer willing-seller (WBWS) principle and that this should be the sole guide for pricing goods and services.

07/02/2025

05/02/2025

Zimbabweans pinning hopes on VP Chiwenga to stop Mnangagwa’s term extension

Amid weak opposition, disorganised civil society and shrinking space for dissent, Chiwenga’s public opposition to plans to extend the president’s term in office is giving hope to those against the plan. But analysts say it will require more than just one force to stop the plan.

04/02/2025

Education in Zimbabwe has lost its value: study asks young people how they feel about that

Zimbabwe’s graduates feel let down because the modernist promises of education have failed them.

28/01/2025

28/01/2025

Rare criticism for Zimbabwe's President

Prominent Zimbabwean war veterans issue a rebuke against the country's president

18/01/2025

African diaspora faces financial crunch of a traditional and white wedding

Saying "I do" two times is a common practice in a lot of cultures where heritage and religion intersect.