Nearly US$140 billion will be invested in public infrastructure in 2021 to ensure that everyone can participate in the social and economic development of Zimbabwe. Among them, investment in energy, transportation, water, sanitation, housing, education, ICT and irrigation will be far ahead .

According to Zimbabwe’s National Development Strategy 1, the government takes the lead in providing the infrastructure and services required by the private sector. The private sector has the primary responsibility for creating new wealth and ensuring that no one is left behind as Zimbabwe advances.

In the 2021 National Public Infrastructure Investment Plan, Minister of Finance and Economic Development Mthuli Ncube stated, “This plan provides new opportunities for the implementation of projects that support economic recovery and growth, protect lives and livelihoods, create jobs, and stimulate productive investment. Motivation. In order to support higher-level and higher-quality investment decisions, and to have a greater impact on the country’s results of such investments, the infrastructure environment must be enabled."

Mthuli Ncube said: "The first priority will be to respond to the immediate health crisis caused by Covid-19. This includes interventions to ensure the safe return of schools, colleges and universities to formal learning. For key issues such as energy, water and sanitation, transportation and information and communication technology, etc. Facilitators to restore services will also be prioritized because they are essential to promoting economic recovery and citizens’ well-being.

"Funds for projects that are about to be completed or projects in progress that have made financial commitments for the implementation of these projects will also prioritize the allocation of resources to maintain the project and reduce fixed time costs. By 2021, overall support under the infrastructure investment plan It will reach $139.8 billion."

Fund allocation plan

According to the package, US$45.070 billion will be allocated for energy, US$36.04 billion for transportation, US$14.05 billion for water and sanitation, US$7 billion for information and communication technology, US$10 billion for health, US$7.5 billion for education, and US$3.9 billion for irrigation. US dollars and 1 billion US dollars for housing.

Minister Nkubo said that although most of the funds come from government revenue, according to the government’s decision, projects that are capable of generating cash flow are funded by the market, but US$39.9 billion will be raised through loans, mainly for tariffs and users’ energy and Transport sector. The expenses are incurred almost immediately and the loan can be repaid and repaid.

The quasi-state enterprises’ own resources accounted for US$9.7 billion, development partners provided another US$5.3 billion, and the statutory funds, mainly from the highway fund and rural electrification fund, reached US$8 billion.

Regarding water issues, Minister Ncube said that the government is trying to narrow the gap between water supply and demand, including investments to meet citizens’ basic sanitation needs. He said: "Strategic investment will be aimed at fully developing existing water sources, including the development of new raw water that can meet current needs and support future growth trends."

The National Human Settlements Policy of Zimbabwe will solve the inherent challenges in this field and explore the mode of rapid housing provision to achieve the NDS1 goal of providing 220,000 houses and apartments by 2025. Minister Nkubo: "Building strong institutions in the public sector is essential to obtain better results from infrastructure spending. The government prioritizes interventions to create a favorable investment environment, improve infrastructure governance systems, and reduce construction transaction cost. "

Fair and transparent procurement process

Minister Nkubo said that in accordance with the Public Investment Management Guidelines, more robust and simplified project preparation and execution methods, as well as fair and transparent procurement processes, are being developed to ensure the efficiency, affordability and sustainability of public infrastructure services .

He said: "The reform of 41 state-owned and para-state enterprises (some of which provide important public services) is becoming the target of various interventions, including liquidation, partial privatization, privatization, commercialization, and subsidiary. Ensuring the sustainable provision of public services." The separation of the Civil Aviation Administration of Zimbabwe has been completed and the reorganization into a streamlined Civil Aviation Administration of Zimbabwe and a new airport management company. The appointment of key personnel and the transfer of assets and employees are already in progress. .

Minister Nkubo said that a favorable infrastructure environment is essential to support higher-level and higher-quality investment decisions and the impact of such investments on national outcomes. He said: “The government gives priority to intervention measures to create a favorable investment environment, improve the infrastructure governance system, and reduce construction transaction costs.” He said.

Minister Ncube said that building strong institutions in the public sector is essential to get better results from infrastructure spending. Editor/Huang Lijun