5/9 Total RBZ external debt was US$4.8bn in March 2021. Block funds US$2.2bn. According to the mid term review this has grown to US$2.8bn.
Therefore RBZ debt is at least US$5.4bn
6/9 The farmers deed of settlement which is a public debt is US$3.5bn.
It’s salient features are not fully known eg interest rates. There are rumours that if a certain amount is not settled within a given period the debt due becomes US$5bn.
Frederic Bastiat came up with the idea of the broken window fallacy.
In simple terms, a boy breaks a shop keepers window. The distraught shopkeeper is told not to be sad, for it is good for the economy. The glazier finally has a job.
There is certainly a wave spreading across the region. It happened in the 1990’s. Some took advantage & some chose the moment to become more intransigent.
Confirmation bias means we see what we want to see. In psychology it’s the invisible gorilla experiment.
My suggestion for political parties in Zimbabwe is to engage an impartial commissioned study of what happened in Malawi & Zambia. Of course it’s not to confirm what we already know. But to make us see the gorilla.
As far as the Economies of SADC are concerned. Another moment as it was in 1990 has arrived. Zambia & Malawi missed the opportunity and remained socialist despite multi party democracy. Zim went the opposite direction into hyperinflation. SA used the moment to end Apartheid.
1/5 Pension funds & financial institutions are complicit in a lot of the rot but certainly not the cause of it. 2008 the gdp went as low $5bn. If GDP recovered to $15bn. It means new member contributions are way higher than old contributions. New members have bigger piece of pie
2/5 This is because pension funds are a pyramid scheme. Nothing unique to Zim but worldwide. They rely on new members & new contributions to sustain them. It’s a huge problem in the UK. The US is different because of 401k. The individual has greater say in investing.
3/5 In other words. Most pension funds around the world have not kept pace with inflation. Pension funds invest in property, stocks & bonds. They’re forced to take up bonds which yield negative returns. In Zim it’s prescribed assets. Which never yield positive returns.
Ian Senior, Corruption,the World’s Big C: Cases, Causes, Consequences, Cures (2006), asserts no significant correlations between high degrees of personal honesty and religious practice and less bribe-taking around the world.
2/24
What do we learn from this significant conclusion on corruption? It means even the most ethical, religious & morally astute societies can be infested with the corruption scourge. Because corrupt states make it impossible to play or move without paying.
3/24
Under Roman statutes corruption was defined as
“whenever money is taken and a publicly-conferred duty is violated.”
An example may suffice to illustrate.
Why do governments erect toll gates? Let’s think of this in simple terms
Ken Flower the head of the CIO went to complain to Ian Smith about dodgy touts becoming government’s business partners.These individuals were meant to be in jail. Smith thought he could control these chaps. These chaps eventually funded Smith’s downfall. Unscrupulous.
Fay Chung in her book explains how a large donation came from Tiny Rowland. Chiwara, the Zanu representative in London was excited & relayed information to Lusaka. But , but, Ndaba Sithole chose to hide this information.. he wanted it for himself! He was forced to share.😂😂
Miles Tendi book on Mujuru recounts a Public Accounts Commitee led by Mangwende on MOD during Nhongo’s reign. It was a fest of irregularities & claims of untouchables & commanders resigning after allegedly receiving kick-backs from tenders. Mugabe turned a blind eye.