World waits for Chinamasa to signal Zimbabwe is open for business
Revising or repealing contentious policies could lure back investors and smooth engagement with lenders
Nairobi/Harare — When Patrick Chinamasa marks the start of his second stint as Zimbabwe’s finance minister by presenting the budget on Thursday, investors will be looking for policy changes in addition to fiscal plans in the post-Robert Mugabe era. While the government needs to rein in runaway spending, end cash shortages and recapitalise banks, signals that it plans to revise or repeal contentious policies such as forcing companies to transfer 51% stakes to black Zimbabweans could be a game-changer. It could lure back investors and smooth engagement with lenders like the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. Chinamasa, a lawyer, was reappointed last week by President Emmerson Mnangagwa, less than two months after former leader Mugabe moved him to another portfolio. Mugabe resigned two weeks ago after an army-led coup ended his 37-year rule. During his tenure, agricultural output collapsed due to forced repossessions of commercially productive, mainly white-owned farmland,...
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