Good morning Zimbabweans. In the upcoming days l will be asking you to suggest burning topics you want us to go through. The immediate ones that come to my mind are:

1. Effect of Sanctions on economy
2. Role of Whistleblowers
3. Peace & Security of our great nation
4. Add yours

1. Effect of sanctions of our economy

Zimbabwe’s Balance of Payments (BoP) position has deteriorated significantly since the introduction of sanctions.

Zimbabwe’s access to international credit markets was blocked after the enactment of ZIDERA. The country has been forced to virtually operate on hand to mouth, and there has been a significant build-up of external debt arrears.

This unfavourable development has worsened the country’s creditworthiness as the country’s international financial risk profile escalated.

This subsequently led to the drying up of traditional sources of external finance from the International Financial Institutions, with the country receiving no support from the African Development Bank since 1998, the International IMF since 1999 and the World Bank since 2001.

In essence, the IFIs stopped their support to Zimbabwe by instituting a number of suspensions on Balance of Payments support, technical assistance, voting and related rights by the IMF, and declaration of illegibility to access fund resources.

Due to Zimbabwe’s failure to honour its financial obligations to the IMF and World Bank since 1999, the Bretton Woods institutions suspended Balance of Payments support and technical assistance. Consequently, the country’s external payment arrears continually increased from...

... US$109 million in 1999 to US$5,4 billion in 2017. The arrears have been rising, now at more than 70 percent of total public and publicly guaranteed external debt.

Regrettably, the lending programme from the World Bank is inactive due to accumulated arrears and sanctions. With effect from October 2000, the World Bank placed all its International Bank of Reconstruction and Development loans and International Development Association credits..

... to, or guaranteed by, Zimbabwe in non-accrual status, resulting in the country being unable to access any loan.

The combined effect of the arrears situation and sanctions has resulted in Zimbabwean companies finding it extremely difficult to access offshore lending, thus, crippling their operations. Pre-sanctions era, loan inflows to Zimbabwean companies increased from US$134 million...

... in 1980 to US$480 million in the 1990s but fell significantly to an average of US$80 million between 2000 and 2008. Currently, where the private sector manages to secure offshore financing it is usually at punitive and exorbitant interest rates.

Moreover, Zimbabwean importers are asked to pay cash upfront resulting in a significant squeeze on private sector cash flows. This has led to bigger challenges, including under capacity utilisation of Zimbabwean companies.

That’s why we say No to Sanctions and yet some of our people are happy to have those remain. As a country, we all suffer. Let us join hands and say no to sanctions.

Having read and understand this thread, should sanctions be lifted or not?