Зимбабве экономикасы: статистика және мәселелер

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| hdi =
| gini = 44.3 (2017)
| edbr = 140th (medium, 2020)
| labor =
| occupations = plainlist|
agriculture: 67.5%
industry: 7.3%
services: 25.2%
(2017 est.) | export goods = platinum, cotton, tobacco, gold, ferroalloys, textiles/clothing
| export partners =
| imports = $8.68 billion (2022 est.) | import goods = machinery and transport equipment, other manufactures, chemicals, fuels, food products
| import partners =
| current account = −$716 million (2017 est.) | debt = 58.47% of GDP (2022 est.) | revenue = *ZWL58.2 trillion (proposed for 2024)
US$10.0 billion (official rate $1:5,790 (Nov 2023))
US$6.26 billion (parallel market $1:9,300 (Nov 2023))

| expenses = 5.5 billion (2017 est.) Agriculture and mining largely contribute to exports. The economy is estimated to be at $73 billion at the end of 2023. The country has reserves of metallurgical grade chromite. Other commercial mineral deposits include coal, asbestos, copper, nickel, gold, platinum and Iron ore.

In 2000, Zimbabwe planned a land redistribution act to seize white owned, commercial farms attained through colonization and distribute the land to the black majority. The new occupants, mainly consisting of indigenous citizens and several prominent members of the ruling ZANU PF administration, were inexperienced or uninterested in farming, thereby failing to retain the labour intensive, highly efficient management of previous landowners. Short term gains were achieved by selling the land or equipment. The contemporary lack of agricultural expertise triggered severe export losses and negatively affected market confidence. The country has experienced a massive drop in food production and idle land is now being utilised by rural communities practising subsistence farming. Production of staple foodstuffs, such as maize, has recovered accordingly – unlike typical export crops including tobacco and coffee. Zimbabwe has also sustained the 30th occurrence of recorded hyperinflation in world history. Government spending is 29.7% of GDP. State enterprises are strongly subsidized. Taxes and tariffs are high, and state regulation is costly to companies. Starting or closing a business is slow and costly. Due to the regulations of the labour market, hiring and terminating workers is a lengthy process. By 2008, unemployment had risen to 94%. Interestingly, as of December 2021, Zimbabwe's official unemployment rate, even according to World Bank stood at 5.17%, making it one of the lowest unemployment rates in Africa. This can also be supported by employment websites in Zimbabwe like Work In Zimbabwe which posts several Jobs in Zimbabwe daily. A 2014 report by the Africa Progress Panel found that, of all the African countries examined when determining how many years it would take to double per capita GDP, Zimbabwe fared the worst, and that at its current rate of development it would take 190 years for the country to double its per capita GDP. Uncertainty around the indigenisation programme (compulsory acquisition), the perceived lack of a free press, the possibility of abandoning the US dollar as official currency, and political uncertainty following the end of the government of national unity with the MDC as well as power struggles within ZANU PF have increased concerns that the country's economic situation could further deteriorate. In September 2016 the finance minister identified "low levels of production and the attendant trade gap, insignificant foreign direct investment and lack of access to international finance due to huge arrears" as significant causes for the poor performance of the economy. Zimbabwe came 140 out of 190 ease of doing business report released by the World Bank Group. They were ranked high for ability to get credit (ranked 85) and protecting minority investors (ranked 95).

Zimbabwe's internal transportation and electrical power networks are adequate; nevertheless, maintenance has been ignored for several years. Zimbabwe is crossed by two trans African automobile routes: the Cairo Cape Town Highway and the Beira Lobito Highway. Poorly paved highways connect the major urban and industrial areas, while rail lines controlled by the National Railways of Zimbabwe connect Zimbabwe to a vast central African railroad network that connects it to all of its neighbors.

The Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority is responsible for providing the country with electrical energy. Zimbabwe has two larger facilities for the generation of electrical power, the Kariba Dam (owned together with Zambia) and since 1983 by large Hwange Thermal Power Station adjacent to the Hwange coal field. However, total generation capacity does not meet the demand, leading to rolling blackouts. The Hwange station is not capable of using its full capacity due to old age and maintenance neglect. In 2006, crumbling infrastructure and lack of spare parts for generators and coal mining lead to Zimbabwe importing 40% of its power, including 100 megawatts from the Democratic Republic of Congo, 200 megawatts from Mozambique, up to 450 from South Africa, and 300 megawatts from Zambia. In May 2010 the country's generation power was an estimated 940MW against a peak demand of 2500MW. Use of local small scale generators is widespread.

The state of education in Zimbabwe affects the development of the economy while the state of the economy can affect access and quality of teachers and education. Zimbabwe has one of Africa's highest literacy rates at over 90%. The crisis since 2000 has, however, diminished these achievements because of a lack of resources and the exodus of teachers and specialists (e. g. doctors, scientists, engineers) to other countries. Also, the start of the new curriculum in primary and secondary sections has affected the state of the once strong education sector.

In recent years, there has been considerable economic hardship in Zimbabwe. Many western countries argue that the Government of Zimbabwe's land reform program, recurrent interference with, and intimidation of the judiciary, as well as maintenance of unrealistic price controls and exchange rates has led to a sharp drop in investor confidence. Between 2000 and December 2007, the national economy contracted by as much as 40%; inflation vaulted to over 66,000%, and there were persistent shortages of hard currency, fuel, medicine, and food. GDP per capita dropped by 40%, agricultural output dropped by 51% and industrial production dropped by 47%. The Mugabe Government attribute Zimbabwe's economic difficulties to sanctions imposed by the Western powers. It has been argued that the sanctions imposed by Britain, the US, and the EU have been designed to cripple the economy and the conditions of the Zimbabwean people in an attempt to overthrow President Mugabe's government. These countries on their side argue that the sanctions are targeted against Mugabe and his inner circle and some of the companies they own. Critics point to the so called "Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act of 2001", signed by Bush, as an effort to undermine Zimbabwe's economy. Soon after the bill was signed, IMF cut off its resources to Zimbabwe. Financial institutions began withdrawing support for Zimbabwe. Terms of the sanctions made it such that all economic assistance would be structured in support of "democratisation, respect for human rights and the rule of law." The EU terminated its support for all projects in Zimbabwe. Because of the sanctions and US and EU foreign policy, none of Zimbabwe's debts have been cancelled as in other countries. Other observers also point out how the asset freezes by the EU on people or companies associated with Zimbabwe's Government have had significant economic and social costs to Zimbabwe. As of February 2004, Zimbabwe's foreign debt repayments ceased, resulting in compulsory suspension from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). This, and the United Nations World Food Programme stopping its food aid due to insufficient donations from the world community, has forced the government into borrowing from local sources.

Zimbabwe began experiencing severe foreign exchange shortages, exacerbated by the difference between the official rate and the black market rate in 2000. In 2004 a system of auctioning scarce foreign currency for importers was introduced, which temporarily led to a slight reduction in the foreign currency crisis, but by mid 2005 foreign currency shortages were once again severe. The currency was devalued by the central bank twice, first to 9,000 to the US$, and then to 17,500 to the US$ on 20 July 2005, but at that date it was reported that that was only half the rate available on the black market. In July 2005 Zimbabwe was reported to be appealing to the South African government for US$1 billion of emergency loans, but despite regular rumours that the idea was being discussed no substantial financial support has been publicly reported. In December 2005 Zimbabwe made a mystery loan repayment of US$120 million to the International Monetary Fund due to expulsion threat from IMF. The official Zimbabwean dollar exchange rate had been frozen at Z$101,196 per U. S. dollar since early 2006, but as of 27 July 2006 the parallel (black market) rate has reached Z$550,000 per U. S. dollar. By comparison, 10 years earlier, the rate of exchange was only Z$9.13 per USD. In August 2006 the RBZ revalued the Zimbabwean Dollar by 1000 ZWD to 1 (revalued) dollar. At the same time Zimbabwe devalued the Zim Dollar by 60% against the USD. New official exchange rate revalued ZWD 250 per USD. The parallel market rate was about revalued ZWD 1,200 to 1,500 per USD (28 September 2006). In November 2006, it was announced that sometime around 1 December there would be a further devaluation and that the official exchange rate would change to revalued ZWD 750 per USD. This never materialized. However, the parallel market immediately reacted to this news with the parallel rate falling to ZWD 2,000 per USD (18 November 2006) and by year end it had fallen to ZWD 3,000 per USD. On 1 April 2007, the parallel market was asking ZWD 30,000 for US$1. By year end, it was down to about ZWD 2,000,000. On 18 January 2008, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe began to issue higher denomination ZWD bearer cheques (a banknote with an expiry date), including $10 million bearer cheques – each of which was worth less than US$1.35 (70p Sterling; 0.90 Euro) on the parallel market at the time of first issue. On 4 April 2008 the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe introduced new $25 million and $50 million bearer cheques. At the time of first issue they were worth US$0.70 and US$1.40 on the parallel market respectively. On 1 May 2008, the RBZ announced that the dollar would be allowed to float in value subject to some conditions. At the date of first issue the $250 million bearer cheque was worth approximately US$1.30 on the parallel market. On 15 May 2008, a new $500 million bearer cheque was issued by the RBZ. At the time of the first issue it was worth US$1.93. In a widely unreported parallel move, on 15 May 2008, the RBZ issued three "special agro cheques" with face values $5 billion (at time of first issue – $19.30), $25 billion ($96.50) and $50 billion ($193). It is further reported that the new agro cheques can be used to buy any goods and services like the bearer cheques. On 30 July 2008, the Governor of the RBZ, Gideon Gono announced that the Zimbabwe dollar would be redenominated by removing 10 zeroes, with effect from 1 August 2008. ZWD10billion became 1 dollar after the redenomination. More banknotes were issued since Gono vowed to continue printing money: $10,000 and $20,000 (29 September); $50,000 (13 October); $100,000, $500,000 and $1 million (3 November); $10 million (2 December); $50 million and $100 million (4 December); $200 million (9 December); $500 million (11 December); $10 billion (19 December); $1 trillion (17 January 2009). On February 2, 2009, a final denomination was implemented, cutting 12 zeroes, before the Zimbabwe dollar was officially abandoned on April 12, 2009. Pending economic recovery, Zimbabwe relied on foreign currency rather than introducing a new currency.

In February 2009, the newly installed national unity government (which included the opposition to Mugabe) allowed foreign currency transactions throughout the economy as a measure to stimulate the economy and end inflation. The Zimbabwean dollar quickly lost all credibility, and by April 2009, the Zimbabwean dollar was suspended entirely, to be replaced by the US dollar in government transactions. In 2014 there were eight legal currencies – US dollar, South African rand, Botswana pula, British pound sterling, Australian dollar, Chinese yuan, Indian rupee and Japanese yen. Dollarization reversed inflation, permitting the banking system to stabilize and the economy to resume slow growth after 2009. Dollarization also had other consequences, including:

Reduced taxation and financial transparency, as people continued to keep their money out of the formal banking system. Extremely high real interest rates due to lack of capital. Government forced into a "pay as you go" system, unable to spend more than it takes in. Deficits of coinage for everyday transactions, leading to the adoption of South African rand coins, sweets, airtime for mobile phones or even condoms for small change. The election budget for the July 2013 presidential election was $104 million and government budget for 2013 was $3.09 billion at a projected economic growth of 5 per cent. The Economist described the 2013 election as "rigged" and how, after regaining full control of the government, the Mugabe government doubled the civil service and embarked on " misrule and dazzling corruption." The Reserve Bank continued to issue large values of treasury bills to support the government's over budget spending. This added to the money supply and in effect devalued all bank balances, despite them being US Dollar denominated. In November 2016 a pseudo currency was issued in the form of Bond Notes despite widespread protests against them. In February 2019, John Mangudya, through a monetary policy presentation formally introduced a new currency, the RTGS dollar which consists of electronic balances in banks and mobile wallets, bond notes and bond coins. This completed the conversion of all US Dollar denominated bank balances to a devalued Zimbabwean currency at a rate of 1:1. In June 2019 the use of foreign currencies in local transactions was prohibited as part of the prospective plan for a new national currency and thus ended the dollarization period. There was still low volume trade in US Dollars, particularly in the informal sector and using in shop bureau de change. In March 2020, blaming the challenges of dealing with COVID 19, the government allowed formal transactions in US Dollars once more. Zimbabwe once more extended its multi currency system from 2025 until 31st Dec'2030 in October 2023 as a result of declining trust in the Zimbabwean dollar, which also declined by more than 80% in 2023.

In response to the negative long term economic situation the three parliamentary parties agreed on a Government of National Unity. Despite serious internal differences this government made some important decisions that improved the general economic situation, first of all the suspension of the national currency, the Zimbabwean Dollar, in April 2009. That stopped hyperinflation and made normal forms of business possible again, by using foreign currency such as the US American Dollar, the South African Rand, the EUs Euro or the Botswana Pula. The former finance minister Tendai Biti (MDC T) tried to hold a disciplined budget. In 2009 Zimbabwe recorded a period of economic growth for the first time in a decade.

Following ZANU PF's landslide electoral victory in the 2013 general elections, Patrick Chinamasa was appointed finance minister. Policies encouraging the indigenisation of the economy were fast tracked and laws requiring that 51% or more of non black Zimbabwean owned companies had to be handed over to black Zimbabweans were implemented. This has been credited with creating further uncertainty in the economy and negatively impacting investment climate in the country. Although legislation dealing with the indigenisation of the Zimbabwean economy has been in development since 2007 and actively initiated by ZANU PF in 2010 the policy has continued to be accused of being unclear and a form of "racketeering by regulation." The government doubled the civil service and embarked on what the Economist described as " misrule and dazzling corruption." Officially Zimbabwe's debt is $7 billion, or over 200% of the country's GDP. However, this figure is disputed, with figures as high as $11 billion being quoted, once debts to other African countries and China are included. As of May 2014, it has been reported that Zimbabwe's economy was in decline following the period of relative economic stability during the Government of National Unity. It is estimated that Zimbabwe's manufacturing sector requires an investment of roughly US$8 billion for working capital and equipment upgrades. In 2016 Tendai Biti, an opposition politician estimated the government was running a deficit of up to 12% of GDP This prompted the Zimbabwean government to limit cash withdrawals from banks and change exchange control regulations in order to try to promote exports and reduce the currency shortage. In June and July 2016, after Government employees had not been paid for weeks, police had set up road blocks to coerce money out of tourists and there were protests throughout Zimbabwe, Patrick Chinamasa, the finance minister, toured Europe in an effort to raise investment capital and loans, admitting "Right now we have nothing." At the same time, the government sought to improve women's access to microfinance via the Zimbabwe Women Microfinance Bank Limited, which began operations 29 May 2018. The Bank operates under the supervision of the Ministry of Women's Affairs, Gender and Community Development.

In mid July 2019 inflation had increased to 175% following the adoption of a new Zimbabwe dollar and banning the use of foreign currency thereby sparking fresh concerns that the country was entering a new period of hyperinflation. The Zimbabwean government stopped releasing inflation data in August 2019. The year on year inflation rate was 521% in December 2019, but Zimbabwe central bank officials said in February 2020 that they hoped to reduce the figure to 50% by the end of December 2020.