Over

the

past

ten

years

Zimbabwe

has

experienced a pervasive economic collapse. The

crisis can largely be attributed to economic mismanagement, poor governance, and loss of support from the international community, all compounded by periods of drought.

The collapse was triggered by the governments decision in 1997 to ignore fiscal constraints in making large payments to veterans of the Independence struggle.

Then, in the wake of political setbacks in 1998, the

government announced the seizure of white-owned farms, which exacerbated the instability. Another pivotal event was the controversial Fast Track

Land Reform scheme for involuntary land redistribution in 2000, which led to a precipitous decline in productivity and output in agriculture, formerly the mainstay of the economy.

Economy - overview
Zimbabwe's economy is growing at a brisk pace despite continuing political uncertainty. Following a decade of contraction, Zimbabwe's economy recorded real growth of 5.9% in 2010. But the government of Zimbabwe still faces a number of difficult economic problems, including a large external debt burden and insufficient formal employment. Zimbabwe's 1998-2002 involvement in the war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo drained hundreds of millions of dollars from the economy. The government's land reform program, characterized by chaos and violence, has badly damaged the commercial farming sector, the traditional source of exports and foreign exchange and the provider of 400,000 jobs, turning Zimbabwe into a net importer of food products. The EU and the US provide food aid on humanitarian grounds, though on a smaller scale than before. Until early 2009, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe routinely printed money to fund the budget deficit, causing hyperinflation. The power-sharing government formed in February 2009 has led to some economic improvements, including the cessation of hyperinflation by eliminating the use of the Zimbabwe dollar and removing price controls. The economy is registering its first growth in a decade, but will be reliant on further political improvement for greater growth.

GDP (purchasing power parity) $5.457 billion (2010 est.) $5.006 billion (2009 est.) $4.723 billion (2008 est.) note: data are in 2010 US dollars

GDP - real growth rate 9% (2010 est.) 6% (2009 est.) -17.7% (2008 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture: 19.8% industry: 24.4% services: 55.7% (2010 est.)

Population below poverty line 68% (2004)

Labor force

3.848 million (2010 est.)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture: 66% industry: 10% services: 24% (1996) Unemployment rate

95% (2009 est.) 80% (2005 est.) note: figures refl

Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 total: 24.9% male: 28.2% female: 21.4% (2002)

Stock of money $NA (31 December 2008) $14.18 trillion (31 December 2007) note: this number reflects the vastly overvalued official exchange rate of 30,000 Zimbabwe dollars per US dollar; at an unofficial rate of 800,000 Zimbabwe dollars per US dollar, the stock of Zimbabwe dollars would equal only about US$500 million and Zimbabwe's velocity of money (the number of times money turns over in the course of a year) would be nine, in line with the velocity of money for other countries in the region

Stock of narrow money $NA (31 December 2010 est.) $2.151 million (31 December 2008 est.) note: Zimbabwe's central bank no longer publishes data on monetary aggregates, except for bank deposits, which amounted to $2.1 billion in November 2010; the Zimbabwe dollar stopped circulating in early 2009; since then, the US dollar and South African rand have been the most frequently used currencies; there are no reliable estimates of the amount of foreign currency circulating in Zimbabwe

Agriculture - products corn, cotton, tobacco, wheat, coffee, sugarcane, peanuts; sheep, goats, pigs Industries mining (coal, gold, platinum, copper, nickel, tin, diamonds, clay, numerous metallic and nonmetallic ores), steel; wood products, cement, chemicals, fertilizer, clothing and footwear, foodstuffs, beverages

Exchange rates
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Zimbabwean dollars (ZWD) $376 million (31 December 2010 est.) per US dollar $351 million (31 December 2009 est.) 234.25 (2010) 234 (2009) 30,000 (2007) 162 (2006) 78 (2005)

CONCLUSION Every Economy has its Own way of running the Country. But the country like this has ruined not only people life but The smile of future Citizens