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Abstract: Zimbabwe has been in macroeconomic doldrums for a long time with the struggle still persisting. To date
no single economic indicator points to the stability path, hence calling for proper policy stance to be adopted. For the
current year, 2020, a world pandemic has emerged with possible serious economic impact to many nations, and
Zimbabwe in not an exception. The world pandemic has been declared by WHO, and now commonly known as
COVID-19, having started in China towards the end of 2019. Zimbabwean economic situation has on its own caused
great impact on the welfare of its citizens including the working class. Outlook for the Zimbabwean economy remains
gloomy as domestic vulnerabilities persists while COVID-19 pandemic poses new challenges. The paper argues that,
while the impact of the pandemic are unavoidable, the existing poverty levels brought by decades of macroeconomic
instability drives the situation higher. The study recommends proper coordination on policies and even
implementation of reforms as a way to ensure the economy is in a steady state path of development. A steady economy
is in a better position to fight pandemics and epidemics than a fragile state. Fragile states are never in a position to
manage disasters. For the public, when the government fails, it is perhaps time to recall the social virtues of local-
level resilience and self-reliance to lesson impact of pandemics, epidemics and natural disasters. The private sector
is recommended to quickly act on possible measures as a contribution to economic development and avoid ripple
effects of pandemics.
Key words: Disaster Management, Epidemics, Natural Disaster, Pandemics, Poverty, Response, Zimbabwe
JEL Codes: D14, D31, D61, D63, E21, E24, H12, H51, H53, I32
I. Introduction
Zimbabwe about four decades ago was a nation with economic prosperity and more was promising. This
prediction, however did not materialize due to various economic, political, social factors among others, rather the
economy turned into a begging nation, and failed to feed itself. Over the past decade, economic growth has been on a
general declining trend, culminating in contraction by an estimated 6.5 percent in 2019 (UNDPZ, 2020). There have
been many attempts to explain how a once relatively prosperous country like Zimbabwe has experienced such a
profound decline (Bird and Prowse, 2009). Since then, various economic policies and reforms has been in place to
resuscitate the economy, however, with unfavourable results. Analysts on various platforms debated with suggestions,
some of which were never implemented while some were partially implemented hence failed to take the economy to
the steady path for development.
Many analysts agree that politics, poor governance and the weakening of the rule of law are major causes
(Bird and Prowse, 2009), and reducing macroeconomic uncertainty is required (Bonga, 2019). There has been
increased call for institutional reforms including restructuring and the addressing of corruption that has bedeviled the
country, as a way to enable economic recovery. Bonga (2014) noted that corruption has become one of the most
notoriously persistent and progressively worsening social problems afflicting Zimbabwe. The social and economic
impact of corruption is greater in developing nations than developed world (Bonga, Chiminya and Mudzingiri; 2015).
Various macroeconomic policies in Zimbabwe have ended up being economic blue prints, hence no delivery.
A policy is only good if it gives solutions to the economic problems prevailing, or when it blocks some negatives to
penetrate the economic engine (Bonga, 2016). There has been uneven implementation of reforms in Zimbabwe. In
their analysis, OCHA (2019) indicated that government policies in Zimbabwe are worsening the country’s economic
crisis, causing immense hardship to those less well-off.
Savings is one strong weapon for future uncertainties. Due to low earnings and reduced welfare for
Zimbabwean citizens, the culture of saving for the future has greatly been impacted. As noted by Bonga and Mugayi
(2018) civil servants and majority of citizens in Zimbabwe have been lowly paid compared to the poverty datum line,
and this has defined their buying power on both locally produced goods and foreign products; on the other hand,
nominal prices have been on the rise further eroding earnings of the majority of citizens. For any income earned the
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marginal propensity to save for the majority of citizens almost equals to none if not negative. The daily demands,
including health care have been hard to meet. Such happenings in the economy led to political upheaval, and a few
political reforms have been implemented in the last decade to correct macroeconomic imbalances.
Apart from the demand-side and supply-side concepts, economic growth strongly rely on political stability
(Bonga and Mugayi, 2018). Establishment of the Government of National Unity (GNU) in February 2009 partly eased
the political, social and economic downturn that faced the country then, and rekindled the hope for recovery, growth
and development (Mupetesi, Francis and Gomo, 2015). Bonga (2019) indicated that good events and policies are
accompanied by low levels of uncertainty while bad events and controversial policies match with high levels of
uncertainty. The political reforms, have never reaped the deemed results for economic recovery, and to date poverty
exists and more is demanded as macroeconomic reforms for the betterment of the country. Sound macroeconomic
policy is compulsory for all economies and without sound macroeconomic policy there cannot be growth (Nyoni and
Bonga, 2017). The Ministry of Finance and Economic Development (2016) acknowledged that, even though the high
poverty levels are largely structural in nature, they are also exacerbated by transient factors rooted on economic
policies and political factors as well as exogenous factors including climate change and HIV and AIDS epidemic,
among others.
In a press statement, IMF (2020) indicated that Zimbabwe is experiencing an economic and humanitarian
crisis and that macroeconomic stability remains a challenge. Zimbabwean industries are still struggling to revive due
to various underpinning factors, with the most cited being liquidity challenges, corruption and politics (Bonga and
Mugayi, 2018). The crisis in Zimbabwe for the past decades spilled over to other countries in the region and world
over. Human capital flight has been on the rise. Many citizens fled to greener pastures in nearby countries. Such
diasporians have aided in reducing the economic impact on the welfare of those that remained in the country through
remittances. Foreign aid also bailed out the economy significantly. Developed countries have always helped
developing countries to the reduce suffering of mankind (Nyoni and Bonga, 2017), and indeed Zimbabweans
benefited.
According to Economic Commission for Africa (2015), high levels of poverty, increased exposure to hazards,
cross-border influx, weak social protection policies and relatively weak institutional capacity undermine disaster risk
reduction measures in the SADC subregion (Zimbabwe included). Given the state of the economy having high levels
of poverty, the study seeks to report as observed the pandemic response by the citizens. Zimbabwe’s readiness to adapt
and/or mitigate pandemics, epidemics and/or natural disasters has come under spotlight given the macroeconomic
status of the economy. Over the past 20 years, poverty rates in Zimbabwe have worsened (Mupetesi, Fancis and Gomo,
2015), and the trend is yet to halt. Poverty ratchets have been common as citizens sold their main assets to cover up
effects of crisis, with most not able to replace such assets in the near future. This also happened before - during the
period of lean socio-economic performance of Zimbabwe in 2008 desperate villagers country wide were exchanging
their livestock for imported bags of mealie meal, cooking oil, sugar and other basic commodities (Practical Action,
2011). Exorbitant interest rates from money lenders (Chambers, 1983) have exploited many households leaving them
poorer.
Challenges of persistent poverty affect mostly young people and women who constitute over 65 per cent and
52 per cent of the total population (2012 Census), respectively (ZUNDAF 2016 - 2020). Zimbabwe has been
implementing poverty reduction strategies since the attainment of its independence in 1980 (Ministry of Finance and
Economic Development, 2016), however the results obtained remain calling for further measures with strong anti-
poverty focus. The pandemic just like other previous outbreaks in Zimbabwe highlighted the years of failed strategies
by the government. Continuous poverty at the household, community, and national levels; inequalities within and
between sectors; and global climate change contribute to the perpetuation and reemergence of neglected tropical or
zoonotic diseases (Munyenyiwa et al, 2019).
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vaccines and antisera. History has shown as pandemics diseases such as acute hemorrhagic conjunctivitis (AHC),
AIDS, cholera, dengue, influenza, plague, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), scabies, West Nile disease, and
obesity. A number of communicable diseases can constitute significant threats at local, regional or global levels
leading to epidemics or pandemics (IFRCRCS, 2018).
The current COVID-19 emergence was marked by high rates of person-to-person transmission, including
from asymptomatic carriers, combined with high severity of illness in vulnerable populations, including those with
very common preexisting chronic conditions like diabetes, heart disease, and lung disease (CDC, 2020). Pandemics
become disasters when they cause large numbers of deaths, as well as illness, and/or have severe social and economic
impacts (IFRCRCS, 2018). Countries might, through measures such as border closures and travel restrictions, delay
arrival of the virus, but they cannot stop it (OSHA, 2009), and this is finally the case with many countries on COVID-
19 (Zimbabwe included).
With the COVID-19, health workers have more risk as well as the health care system with no suitable flow
of equipment to cater for the affected. Governments, employers, workers and their organizations face enormous
challenges as they try to combat the COVID-19 pandemic and protect safety and health at work (ILO, 2020). The
public has been repeatedly called on to “flatten the curve,” in reference to the social and behavioral changes that we
as a society can undertake to slow the spread of disease (Sasangohar et al., 2020).
Lockdowns and related business disruptions, travel restrictions, school closures and other containment
measures have had sudden and drastic impacts on workers and enterprises (ILO, 2020a), as well as the general
populace. Workers who believe that their employer provides a safe and healthy workplace are more likely to report
for work during a pandemic (OSHA, 2014). Some workers lost their jobs, including informal workers. Informal
workers account for around 61% of the global workforce (ILO, 2020) and have no protection and are vulnerable to
risks. Working in the absence of protections such as sick leave or unemployment benefits, these workers may need to
make a choice between health and income, which comes at a risk to both their health, the health of others and their
economic wellbeing (ILO 2020b).
The social vulnerability theory explains the situation in Zimbabwe. Social vulnerability refers to the inability
of people, organizations, and societies to withstand adverse impacts from multiple stressors to which they are exposed
(Mukangaanise, 2011). Social work views disasters in a stress related framework tinted by lenses that consider the
disruption of societal functioning at a human level (Mhlanga et. al, 2019). Having high levels of poverty in the country
as well as high rates of unemployment, most of the population is vulnerable hence in the event of a disaster happening
the population will be severely stressed and shocked. Some groups in society are more prone than others to damage,
loss and suffering in the context of different hazards (Blaikie et. al, 1994), given the skewed income distribution in
Zimbabwe. Poor people suffer from crises more often than people who are richer because they have little or no savings,
little income and limited resources (Mukanganise, 2011).
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entrepreneurs and self-employed persons to be forced out of work hence losing their only opportunity for income, and
as noted by Kim and Von dem Knesebeck (2015) depression, burnout and anxiety to the affected populace. An
influenza pandemic is projected to have a global impact on morbidity and mortality, thus requiring a sustained, large-
scale response from the healthcare community (OSHA, 2009).
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displacing natives to safer zones. The message about Cyclone Idai, and how it was projected to affect did not
effectively filter to the community (Chanza et. al, 2020), with some population resisting the information given to them
to vacate low lying areas. The trust of responsible agencies is also recognised as one of the most important influences
upon risk perceptions and responses to official communication (Tapsell et. al, 2010), which might be a significant
concern.
To summarise, Zimbabwe is a country that has been devastated by natural or man-made disasters
(Mukanganise, 2011), and the major hazards are hydro-meteorological (droughts and floods), geologic (earthquakes
and landslides), biological (gastro-intestinal tract infections and HIV and AIDS), technological (road traffic accidents)
and land degradation (deforestation, veld fires and gold panning), (Mavhura, 2017). All these require effective disaster
preparedness to ensure minimum damage to property and human and animal lives.
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respective institutions. Zimbabwe has a good policy framework on paper but not supported by practices on the ground
(Mavhura, 2017). There is need to improve coordination from national to local level and also there is need to fund
early warning systems (Mukanganise, 2011). Lack of sufficient communication will also impede on effective disaster
response (Kufandada, 2016). A donor dependency syndrome has also developed in the country, where overreliance
on donor funding exist to solve crises and disasters. Due to poor disaster management, there is modern realization that
humans are the causal agents of disasters.
The study clearly demonstrated that awareness, preparedness and resilience determine the outcome of the
impact of any hazard. Welfare status of citizens do matter to reduce the impact of any disaster. The lessons documented
by this study demonstrate that when confronted with seemingly inadequate government intervention to disasters, then
it is time to recall the social virtues of local-level resilience and self-reliance. Community participation in disaster
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response is very essential and the first humanitarian actors on site after the occurrence of a disaster are the local
community and local government (Kufandada, 2016). Generally, it is beyond the capabilities of government to offer
what may be required by citizens when the disaster scope and magnitude are beyond a localized event. Communities
do not just sit back when confronted with disasters, they take action at local level utilising available resources
(Mukanganise, 2011). To attain such, efforts should start with education and leadership that instill a sense of
community and duty to the community, into the fabric of our society. Despite the presence of risk awareness and risk
reduction education programs in Zimbabwe, there remains significant scope for improvement. Disasters do come
again, and it is the citizens’ choice to act.
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