| Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Zimbabwe conventional short form: Zimbabwe former: Southern Rhodesia, Rhodesia, Zimbabwe-Rhodesia etymology: takes its name from the Kingdom of Zimbabwe (13th-15th century) and its capital of Great Zimbabwe, the largest stone structure in pre-colonial southern Africa |
| Government type | presidential republic |
| Capital | name: Harare geographic coordinates: 17 49 S, 31 02 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: named after a village of Harare at the site of the present capital; the village name derived from a Shona chieftain, Ne-harawa, whose name meant "he who does not sleep" |
| Administrative divisions | 8 provinces and 2 cities* with provincial status; Bulawayo*, Harare*, Manicaland, Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Masvingo, Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, Midlands |
| Independence | 18 April 1980 (from the UK) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 18 April (1980) |
| Constitution | history: previous 1965 (at Rhodesian independence), 1979 (Lancaster House Agreement), 1980 (at Zimbabwean independence); latest final draft completed January 2013, approved by referendum 16 March 2013, approved by Parliament 9 May 2013, effective 22 May 2013 amendments: proposed by the Senate or by the National Assembly; passage requires two-thirds majority vote by the membership of both houses of Parliament and assent of the president of the republic; amendments to constitutional chapters on fundamental human rights and freedoms and on agricultural lands also require approval by a majority of votes cast in a referendum; amended many times, last in 2017 |
| Legal system | mixed legal system of English common law, Roman-Dutch civil law, and customary law |
| International law organization participation | has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt |
| Citizenship | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: the father must be a citizen of Zimbabwe; in the case of a child born out of wedlock, the mother must be a citizen dual citizenship recognized: no residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Emmerson Dambudzo MNANGAGWA (since 24 November 2017); First Vice President Constantino CHIWENGA (since 28 December 2017); note - Robert Gabriel MUGABE resigned on 21 November 2017, after ruling for 37 years head of government: President Emmerson Dambudzo MNANGAGWA (since 24 November 2017); Vice President Constantino CHIWENGA (since 28 December 2017); Vice President (vacant) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by president, responsible to National Assembly elections/appointments: each presidential candidate nominated with a nomination paper signed by at least 10 registered voters (at least 1 candidate from each province) and directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (no term limits); election last held on 3 July 2018 (next to be held in 2023); co-vice presidents drawn from party leadership election results: Emmerson MNANGAGWA reelected president in 1st round of voting; percent of vote - Emmerson MNANGAGWA (ZANU-PF) 50.8%, Nelson CHAMISA (MDC-T) 44.3%, Thokozani KHUPE (MDC-N) .9%, other 3% |
| Legislative branch | description: bicameral Parliament consists of: Senate (80 seats; 60 members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies - 6 seats in each of the 10 provinces - by proportional representation vote, 16 indirectly elected by the regional governing councils, 2 reserved for the National Council Chiefs, and 2 reserved for members with disabilities; members serve 5-year terms) National Assembly (270 seats; 210 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and 60 seats reserved for women directly elected by proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms) elections: Senate - last held for elected member on 30 July 2018 (next to be held in 2023) National Assembly - last held on 30 July 2018 (next to be held in 2023) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ZANU-PF 34, MDC Alliance 25, Chiefs 18, people with disabilities 2, MDC-T 1; composition - men 45, women 35, percent of women 43.8% National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ZANU-PF 179, MDC Alliance 88, MDC-T 1, NPF 1, independent 1; composition - men 185, women 25, percent of women 31.5%; note - total Parliament percent of women 34.3% |
| Judicial branch | highest courts: Supreme Court (consists of the chief justice and 4 judges); Constitutional Court (consists of the chief and deputy chief justices and 9 judges) judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges appointed by the president upon recommendation of the Judicial Service Commission, an independent body consisting of the chief justice, Public Service Commission chairman, attorney general, and 2-3 members appointed by the president; judges normally serve until age 65 but can elect to serve until age 70; Constitutional Court judge appointment NA; judges serve nonrenewable 15-year terms subordinate courts: High Court; Labor Court; Administrative Court; regional magistrate courts; customary law courts; special courts |
| Political parties and leaders | MDC Alliance [Thokozane KHUPEIS] (acting) Movement for Democratic Change - MDC-T [Thokozani KHUPE] National People's Party or NPP [Joyce MUJURU] (formerly Zimbabwe People First or ZimPF) National Patriotic Front or NPF [Ambrose MUTINHIRI] Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front or ZANU-PF [Emmerson Dambudzo MNANGAGWA] Zimbabwe African Peoples Union or ZAPU [Isaac MABUKA] |
| International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, AU, COMESA, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Tadeous Tafirenyika CHIFAMBA (since 7 July 2021); chancery: 1608 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 332-7100 FAX: [1] (202) 483-9326 email address and website: general@zimembassydc.org https://zimembassydc.org/ |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Brian A. NICHOLS (since 19 July 2018) embassy: 2 Lorraine Drive, Bluffhill, Harare mailing address: 2180 Harare Place, Washington DC 20521-2180 telephone: [263] 867-701-1000 FAX: [263] 24-233-4320 email address and website: consularharare@state.gov https://zw.usembassy.gov/ |
| Flag description | seven equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, red, black, red, yellow, and green with a white isosceles triangle edged in black with its base on the hoist side; a yellow Zimbabwe bird representing the long history of the country is superimposed on a red five-pointed star in the center of the triangle, which symbolizes peace; green represents agriculture, yellow mineral wealth, red the blood shed to achieve independence, and black stands for the native people |
| National symbol(s) | Zimbabwe bird symbol, African fish eagle, flame lily; national colors: green, yellow, red, black, white |
| National anthem | name: "Kalibusiswe Ilizwe leZimbabwe" [Northern Ndebele language] "Simudzai Mureza WeZimbabwe" [Shona] (Blessed Be the Land of Zimbabwe) lyrics/music: Solomon MUTSWAIRO/Fred Lecture CHANGUNDEGA note: adopted 1994 |
Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021
