Zimbabwe can create 230 000 new jobs in the next 14 years by making “decisive and coordinated” policies, and leveraging the prevailing macroeconomic stability to accelerate growth, the World Bank Group said.
The southern African nation’s economy is showing resilience by sustaining single-digit inflation since January 2026 and achieving currency and exchange rate stability since October 2024, according to central bank governor John Mushayavanhu in his 2026 Mid-Term Monetary Policy review.
The country has also been delisted from the fragile and conflict-affected economies by the World Bank, while US-based multinational investment bank and financial services corporation Citigroup Inc stated in an August 2026 report that Zimbabwe’s economy is undergoing a faster-than-expected turnaround, marking a significant break from its history of hyperinflation and fiscal instability.
“The window of opportunity created by recent stabilization is open, but decisive and coordinated execution over multiple years will be essential,” Victor Steenbergen, World Bank senior economist and lead author of the Zimbabwe Growth and Jobs Report said.
“Following recent progress on macroeconomic stabilization, Zimbabwe has a timely opportunity to build long-term economic momentum and expand formal job opportunities,” he said.
“…accelerating key structural reforms could raise real GDP by an additional 10.7 percent by 2030 and 26.9 percent by 2040 above the baseline, supporting the creation of up to 230,000 new jobs and raising real worker earnings by more than 30 percent over the same period,” the international lender said.
Steenbergen said Zimbabwe can start by boosting the energy sector and exports.
“Focusing initially on power sector reliability and trade facilitation will yield rapid dividends. This sets the stage for deeper legal and financial sector reforms that build lasting investor confidence.”
While monetary discipline has brought about local currency stability and lowered Zimbabwe’s inflation, the World Bank report said “at the same time, economic growth has not yet generated widespread improvements in productive employment or household incomes”.
“Currently, 80 percent of Zimbabweans work in the informal sector with median earnings of $130 per month, and nearly half the population lives below the international poverty line,” the international financial institution said.
“The analysis shows that labor has largely shifted from agriculture into low-productivity retail and informal services rather than formal manufacturing or high-value service sectors.”
The World Bank report highlighted four priority areas for policy attention namely; macroeconomic stability and arrears resolution, addressing power generation and grid reliability, addressing the ease and cost of doing business, and promoting and securing private sector investment.