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Zambia vs. Zimbabwe

Economy

ZambiaZimbabwe
Economy - overview

Zambia had one of the world's fastest growing economies for the ten years up to 2014, with real GDP growth averaging roughly 6.7% per annum, though growth slowed during the period 2015 to 2017, due to falling copper prices, reduced power generation, and depreciation of the kwacha. Zambia's lack of economic diversification and dependency on copper as its sole major export makes it vulnerable to fluctuations in the world commodities market and prices turned downward in 2015 due to declining demand from China; Zambia was overtaken by the Democratic Republic of Congo as Africa's largest copper producer. GDP growth picked up in 2017 as mineral prices rose.

Despite recent strong economic growth and its status as a lower middle-income country, widespread and extreme rural poverty and high unemployment levels remain significant problems, made worse by a high birth rate, a relatively high HIV/AIDS burden, by market-distorting agricultural and energy policies, and growing government debt. Zambia raised $7 billion from international investors by issuing separate sovereign bonds in 2012, 2014, and 2015. Concurrently, it issued over $4 billion in domestic debt and agreed to Chinese-financed infrastructure projects, significantly increasing the country's public debt burden to more than 60% of GDP. The government has considered refinancing $3 billion worth of Eurobonds and significant Chinese loans to cut debt servicing costs.

Zimbabwe's economy depends heavily on its mining and agriculture sectors. Following a contraction from 1998 to 2008, the economy recorded real growth of more than 10% per year in the period 2010-13, before falling below 3% in the period 2014-17, due to poor harvests, low diamond revenues, and decreased investment. Lower mineral prices, infrastructure and regulatory deficiencies, a poor investment climate, a large public and external debt burden, and extremely high government wage expenses impede the country's economic performance.

Until early 2009, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) routinely printed money to fund the budget deficit, causing hyperinflation. Adoption of a multi-currency basket in early 2009 - which allowed currencies such as the Botswana pula, the South Africa rand, and the US dollar to be used locally - reduced inflation below 10% per year. In January 2015, as part of the government's effort to boost trade and attract foreign investment, the RBZ announced that the Chinese renmimbi, Indian rupee, Australian dollar, and Japanese yen would be accepted as legal tender in Zimbabwe, though transactions were predominantly carried out in US dollars and South African rand until 2016, when the rand's devaluation and instability led to near-exclusive use of the US dollar. The government in November 2016 began releasing bond notes, a parallel currency legal only in Zimbabwe which the government claims will have a one-to-one exchange ratio with the US dollar, to ease cash shortages. Bond notes began trading at a discount of up to 10% in the black market by the end of 2016.

Zimbabwe's government entered a second Staff Monitored Program with the IMF in 2014 and undertook other measures to reengage with international financial institutions. Zimbabwe repaid roughly $108 million in arrears to the IMF in October 2016, but financial observers note that Zimbabwe is unlikely to gain new financing because the government has not disclosed how it plans to repay more than $1.7 billion in arrears to the World Bank and African Development Bank. International financial institutions want Zimbabwe to implement significant fiscal and structural reforms before granting new loans. Foreign and domestic investment continues to be hindered by the lack of land tenure and titling, the inability to repatriate dividends to investors overseas, and the lack of clarity regarding the government's Indigenization and Economic Empowerment Act.

GDP (purchasing power parity)$61.985 billion (2019 est.)

$61.104 billion (2018 est.)

$58.735 billion (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars
$41.533 billion (2019 est.)

$45.194 billion (2018 est.)

$43.112 billion (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars
GDP - real growth rate3.4% (2017 est.)

3.8% (2016 est.)

2.9% (2015 est.)
3.7% (2017 est.)

0.7% (2016 est.)

1.4% (2015 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP)$3,470 (2019 est.)

$3,522 (2018 est.)

$3,485 (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars
$2,836 (2019 est.)

$3,130 (2018 est.)

$3,028 (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars
GDP - composition by sectoragriculture: 7.5% (2017 est.)

industry: 35.3% (2017 est.)

services: 57% (2017 est.)
agriculture: 12% (2017 est.)

industry: 22.2% (2017 est.)

services: 65.8% (2017 est.)
Population below poverty line54.4% (2015 est.)38.3% (2019 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage sharelowest 10%: 1.5%

highest 10%: 47.4% (2010)
lowest 10%: 2%

highest 10%: 40.4% (1995)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)9.1% (2019 est.)

7.4% (2018 est.)

6.5% (2017 est.)
241.7% (2019 est.)

10.6% (2018 est.)

0.9% (2017 est.)
Labor force6.898 million (2017 est.)7.907 million (2017 est.)
Labor force - by occupationagriculture: 54.8%

industry: 9.9%

services: 35.3% (2017 est.)
agriculture: 67.5%

industry: 7.3%

services: 25.2% (2017 est.)
Unemployment rate15% (2008 est.)

50% (2000 est.)
11.3% (2014 est.)

80% (2005 est.)

note: data include both unemployment and underemployment; true unemployment is unknown and, under current economic conditions, unknowable
Distribution of family income - Gini index57.1 (2015 est.)

50.8 (2004)
44.3 (2017 est.)

50.1 (2006)
Budgetrevenues: 4.473 billion (2017 est.)

expenditures: 6.357 billion (2017 est.)
revenues: 3.8 billion (2017 est.)

expenditures: 5.5 billion (2017 est.)
Industriescopper mining and processing, emerald mining, construction, foodstuffs, beverages, chemicals, textiles, fertilizer, horticulturemining (coal, gold, platinum, copper, nickel, tin, diamonds, clay, numerous metallic and nonmetallic ores), steel; wood products, cement, chemicals, fertilizer, clothing and footwear, foodstuffs, beverages
Industrial production growth rate4.7% (2017 est.)0.3% (2017 est.)
Agriculture - productssugar cane, cassava, maize, milk, vegetables, soybeans, beef, tobacco, wheat, groundnutssugar cane, maize, milk, tobacco, cassava, vegetables, bananas, beef, cotton, oranges
Exports$8.216 billion (2017 est.)

$6.514 billion (2016 est.)
$4.422 billion (2018 est.)

$6.252 billion (2017 est.)
Exports - commoditiescopper, gold, gemstones, sulfuric acid, raw sugar, tobacco (2019)gold, tobacco, iron alloys, nickel, diamonds, jewelry (2019)
Exports - partnersSwitzerland 29%, China 16%, Namibia 12%, Democratic Republic of the Congo 9%, Singapore 5% (2019)United Arab Emirates 40%, South Africa 23%, Mozambique 9% (2019)
Imports$7.852 billion (2017 est.)

$6.539 billion (2016 est.)
$7.215 billion (2018 est.)

$9.658 billion (2017 est.)
Imports - commoditiesrefined petroleum, crude petroleum, delivery trucks, gold, fertilizers (2019)refined petroleum, delivery trucks, packaged medicines, fertilizers, tractors (2019)
Imports - partnersSouth Africa 29%, China 14%, United Arab Emirates 12%, India 5% (2019)South Africa 41%, Singapore 23%, China 8% (2019)
Debt - external$11.66 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$9.562 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$9.357 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$10.14 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
Exchange ratesZambian kwacha (ZMK) per US dollar -

21.065 (2020 est.)

15.3736 (2019 est.)

11.855 (2018 est.)

8.6 (2014 est.)

6.2 (2013 est.)
Zimbabwean dollars (ZWD) per US dollar -

82.3138 (2020 est.)

16.44579 (2019 est.)

322.355 (2018 est.)

234.25 (2010)

note: the dollar was adopted as a legal currency in 2009; since then the Zimbabwean dollar has experienced hyperinflation and is essentially worthless
Fiscal yearcalendar yearcalendar year
Public debt63.1% of GDP (2017 est.)

60.7% of GDP (2016 est.)
82.3% of GDP (2017 est.)

69.9% of GDP (2016 est.)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold$2.082 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$2.353 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$431.8 million (31 December 2017 est.)

$407.2 million (31 December 2016 est.)
Current Account Balance-$1.006 billion (2017 est.)

-$934 million (2016 est.)
-$716 million (2017 est.)

-$553 million (2016 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate)$25.71 billion (2017 est.)$21.441 billion (2019 est.)
Ease of Doing Business Index scoresOverall score: 66.9 (2020)

Starting a Business score: 84.9 (2020)

Trading score: 56.9 (2020)

Enforcement score: 50.8 (2020)
Overall score: 54.5 (2020)

Starting a Business score: 72 (2020)

Trading score: 54.3 (2020)

Enforcement score: 39.7 (2020)
Taxes and other revenues17.4% (of GDP) (2017 est.)21.5% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)-7.3% (of GDP) (2017 est.)-9.6% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Unemployment, youth ages 15-24total: 26%

male: 24.7%

female: 27.6% (2018 est.)
total: 27.5%

male: 25%

female: 31.4% (2019 est.)
GDP - composition, by end usehousehold consumption: 52.6% (2017 est.)

government consumption: 21% (2017 est.)

investment in fixed capital: 27.1% (2017 est.)

investment in inventories: 1.2% (2017 est.)

exports of goods and services: 43% (2017 est.)

imports of goods and services: -44.9% (2017 est.)
household consumption: 77.6% (2017 est.)

government consumption: 24% (2017 est.)

investment in fixed capital: 12.6% (2017 est.)

investment in inventories: 0% (2017 est.)

exports of goods and services: 25.6% (2017 est.)

imports of goods and services: -39.9% (2017 est.)
Gross national saving39.7% of GDP (2019 est.)

41.8% of GDP (2018 est.)

36.3% of GDP (2017 est.)
-2.2% of GDP (2017 est.)

19.1% of GDP (2016 est.)

8% of GDP (2015 est.)

Source: CIA Factbook