The Zimbabwean Economy Could Contract By 10% In 2020 - World Bank

The World Bank is projecting more bad news for Zimbabwe as it is projecting that the Zimbabwean economy will probably contract by a whopping 10% in 2020 leaving the country’s economic growth in the negative. a number that is -12.7% lower than what was projected at the turn of the new year, The Zimbabwe Independent reports.

According to the international lender, the COVID-19 pandemic has further worsened the woes troubling Zimbabwe:

As a result of these severe economic strains, activity in the region (sub-Saharan Africa) is expected to contract by 2,8 percent this year the sharpest contraction on record and 5,8 percentage points weaker than previous forecasts.

The fall in per capita GDP (gross domestic product) is bound to be even deeper, likely causing millions in the region to fall back into extreme poverty.

However, the World Bank had a bit of good news for beleaguered Zimbabwe as it projected that the economy will rebound by close to 3% next year:

Growth in the region is expected to rebound to 3,1 percent in 2021; however, the outlook is subject to substantial uncertainty. The projected pick-up assumes that the pandemic will have faded by the second half of 2020, that domestic outbreaks in the region follow a similar path, and that growth in major trading partners will rebound. Commodity prices are also expected to recover but remain below 2019 levels,

These include weak and underfunded health care systems government per capita spending on health care is about 2% of that in advanced economies and lack of access to basic sanitation.

The socio-economic situation has deteriorated over the last few months escalated with the collapse of the exchange rate, inflation soaring to 750+%, human right abuses drawing the attention of the international community

More: The Zimbabwe Independent