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Zim not learning from neoliberal historical failures

This article evaluates the major impacts of neoliberal health, education and economic growth policies on poor and marginalised people in Zimbabwe. It argues that poor and marginalised people, especially women and the youth have been disproportionately impacted by the imposition of neoliberal policies.

At the same time, the article outlines how neo-liberal policies have disproportionately benefited political and economic elites, resulting in the expansion of structural inequalities and the extension of generational cycles of poverty.

President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s “prosperity through austerity,” reinstates the neoliberal policy in Zimbabwe’s development landscape through budget limitations to health education and public service delivery.

For example, in 2022 education received 13.1% and health received 14.9% of the total budget.

The reinstated neoliberal policies have negative impacts on the development of Zimbabwe including, but not limited to, the marginalisation of the poor in the distribution of educational and health benefits, inflationary pressures, and reduction in employment.

Globalisation on its own is unsympathetically affecting the economy of Zimbabwe through brain drain.

Globalisation has caused the labour market to be competitive or open to the extent that countries that have not contributed to Zimbabwe’s human capital growth are now seeking to profit out of it.

Developed countries such as United Kingdom, Canada and Australia are under pressure to recruit manpower from Africa, particularly in the education and health sectors, and unfortunately Zimbabwe is one of the top targeted countries in Africa which includes South Africa and Nigeria.

For example, in February 2023 Zimbabwe joined a select group of nations and territories whose educators are eligible to get Qualified Teacher Status (QTS), which allows them to work long-term as teachers in the UK.

Also, after or during the Covid-19 era Zimbabwe lost more than 4 000 nurses and doctors to European countries. This has negatively impacted the economic growth of Zimbabwe as human capital is essential to the development of a country.

The privatisation of healthcare has diminished the overall quality of healthcare in Zimbabwe and further brought healthcare beyond the reach of the majority.

Hospital services are now pro-rich and antipoor as the privatisation of healthcare makes health services more unaffordable and less available to the poor who need it the most.

Pregnant women are now required to bring their own cotton swab, gloves, scissors and clamp forceps just to mention a few, in order for them to be assisted when giving birth and this is because of shortages of medical supplies in public hospitals caused by government's reduced budget allocations towards the health sector.

Furthermore, doctors and nurses have been on a series of strikes since 2019 over their low pay due to the government limiting payments of public employees’ basic salaries.

The strikes have increased the rates of medical error and caused preventable patient deaths within the country.

Moreover, it can be argued that good health contributes to development. This is supported by Mushkin’s health-led growth hypothesis, which argues that health in itself is a form of capital, and investment in healthcare can boost human capital, providing a catalytic effect to overall economic growth.

Thus, neoliberal policies in Zimbabwe have not only diminished the idea of healthcare as a universal human right but, also violated section 76 of the constitution of Zimbabwe. Privatisation of education has made educational services to be pro-rich and anti-poor as accessibility to quality education is now determined by people`s financial capability.

School fees in almost all private schools in Zimbabwe is now more than US$400 and with 73% of the population earning not more than US$100 according to the 2022 FinScope Consumer Survey, three quarters of people in Zimbabwe cannot afford to send their children to private schools where they can receive quality education. Hence, this has magnified inequalities within the country.

Based on the above argument it is fair to conclude that for Zimbabwe to develop as a nation, the government of Zimbabwe should follow pro-poor developmental path that is based on the principle that human capital is the nation’s most precious asset.

This is because development is a process that creates growth, progress, “positive change” or addition of physical, economic environmental, social and demographic components, and neoliberalism as a development strategy in Zimbabwe has failed to establish positive change in the country.

Zimcodd

Letters To The Editor

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2023-03-26T07:00:00.0000000Z

2023-03-26T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://alphamedia.pressreader.com/article/281638194456068

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