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Oliver Kazunga, Senior Business Reporter
THE National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) will deliver more jobs with employment rate targeted at 80 percent and a gross national income per capita of US$4 000 per month by 2030.

Finance and Economic Development Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube said this while speaking from Harare through a virtual platform during the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce trade conference held in Bulawayo yesterday.

Following the successful implementation of the Transitional Stabilisation Programme (TSP), which ran from 2018-2020, the Government has launched a five-year blueprint, NDS1, to anchor the country from 2021-2025.

NDS1 charts policies, institutional reforms and national priorities over the next five years for Zimbabwe to achieve an upper middle-income economy status by 2030.

Prof Ncube expressed optimism that NDS1 would be successful in achieving the targets Government has set towards attaining an upper middle-income economy by 2030.

“We have achieved quite a lot in terms of macro-economic stability. Now we are moving into a more developmental agenda of sustainable economic growth. We want the gross national income per capita for Zimbabweans to be at US$4 000 per month by year 2030, we want the employment levels to rise and we are targeting 80 percent. It’s not easy but we have to give it a try,” he said.

After NDS1, the Government will implement the National Development Strategy 2 to anchor the country from 2026 to 2030. Prof Ncube said the TSP, which focused on stabilising the macro-economy and the financial sector as well as improve infrastructure, laid a solid foundation required for the economy to take off.

The World Bank has since welcomed NDS1, saying it would go a long way in helping the country’s economic recovery efforts, particularly Government’s thrust to embark on reforms and engagement efforts.

Prof Ncube said through the national development thrust, the Government was also targeting to reduce poverty levels to under 25 percent by 2030.

“We also want to increase the number of households with power (electricity) to about 70 percent by that year, and also we have got to increase access to clean water to 90 percent by 2030.

“We also expect that the life expectancy for Zimbabwe will improve from 61 years to 65 years,” he said.

The Second Republic, said Prof Ncube, envisions maintaining prevailing stable macro-economic environment through prudent fiscal and monetary management to ensure a strong balance of payments position.

He said the improvement ion the Ease of Doing Business is expected to attract both local and foreign investment.

“There are 16 areas we are looking into to improve the environment of doing business and these include economic growth and stability; food security and nutrition; governance; moving the economy up the value chain and structural transformation; human capital development; environmental protection, climate resilience and natural resource management; housing delivery; ICT and the digital economy; health and well-being; transport and infrastructure,” said Prop Ncube.

He said the Government wants to improve on re-engagement and push forward issues around clearance of its arrears in order to improve the country’s rankings globally and become a better investment destination.

Official data shows that Zimbabwe’s total public debt stands at US$11,1 billion, estimated at 53,9 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

And of that total, 95,6 percent is external, which includes $6,4 billion in arrears to international financial institutions, bilateral and private creditors.

In its economic outlook report released last month, the African Development Bank has noted that Zimbabwe has been in default since 2000.

“A Staff Monitored Programme with the International Monetary Fund to help Zimbabwe implement economic policies from May 2019 to March 2020 ended in September 2019.

“The Government and the Fund have not agreed to a new arrangement, which would be aimed at helping Zimbabwe clear its arrears,” said the regional financier.

As a result, it said the country will have to continue to rely largely on domestic resource mobilisation and borrowing from non-Paris Club members like China.

For Zimbabwe to improve its domestic resource mobilisation capacity, it needs to shift its economy from being based on primary industries such as agriculture and mining. — @okazunga