Mukasiri Sibanda's Page

In the rear-view mirror of Zimbabwe’s political and socio-economic narrative, Mugabe image looms large. But is the windshield clear enough for accelerated progress? One important clue which can help to unravel this puzzle relates to how the new government is managing the country’s mineral wealth- platinum, diamonds, lithium and gold among others.Of all minerals, developments in the diamond sector warrants a close examination. This is hardly surprising though. Diamonds, because of their…See More

“Most beneficiaries are not aware that $74 million was disbursed in 2017 and that the funding has been doubled to $150 million in 2018. Furthermore, there is need for awareness raising on issue of collateral, especially acceptance of cattle as collateral security” Themba Sibanda, Zimbabwe Miners Federation organising secretaryFaced with severe foreign currency shortages, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) is banking on the propulsive role gold to drive export earnings. In its 5-year plan, RBZ…See More

RBZ’s export incentives from 05 May 2016 to 31 December 2017 sterilised mineral royalty revenue by a discounting factor of nearly 86%. This obviously hurts the government’s desire to create fiscal space, when revenue generation is constricted my toxic incentivesThemed “Enhancing financial stabilisation to promote business confidence” is the 2018 monetary policy statement tooled to support mining sector led contribution…See More

Mining has played an economic shock absorber role, never mind the squandering of Marange alluvial diamond wealth. The Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold (ASGM) sector which has recently eclipsed production of large scale miners has been instrumental, not only in earning the country much needed foreign currency, but creating employment and income generating opportunities for over half a million people directly.A compelling case is made for ASGM as a front door way of empowering poor but resource…See More

By Mukasiri Sibanda and Munyaradzi HwengwereThe Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining (ASM) sector has gained world attention for its potential to transform lives of impoverished but resource rich communities. Largely informal, very little is publicly known about the ASM sector. Often, the public is quick to judge artisanal miners based on negatives-environmental degradation, violence and spreading HIV and AIDS. Policy makers are sometimes guilt of failure to align their policy and practice reforms…See More

Under the pretext of “Operation Restore Legacy” led by the military, a new transitional phase has been ushered in Zimbabwe. Government has publicly shown its policy intentions to grow the economy, revamp public service delivery and to fight dogged…See More

IntroductionIf you want to know government’s priorities, don’t be swayed by eloquent speeches from politicians, take a close look at the budget. Plans on how government intends to generate, allocate and spend public revenue in a manner that can hurt or protect the poor are revealed publicly. As Zimbabwe is endowed with…See More