Steve Hanke

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Claim: life in Zimbabwe is now worse than under former President Robert Mugabe , according to Fadzayi Mahere of the opposition movement for Democratic change (MDC).

conclusion: It is true That in The Last few months the economic situation has deteriorated. But there were periods during Mr Mugabe's long rule, when the economic indicators were much worse.

The opposition in Zimbabwe has called for protests against the conditions in the country, accused the government of mismanagement.

Since the year 2017, Zimbabwe has been led by President Emmerson Mnangagwa , after the fall of his longtime predecessor, Robert Mugabe , the military.

We have a look at some of the most important national economic indicators as a measure of whether the people in Zimbabwe are worse off today than they were before Mr Mnangagwa took over.

Zimbabwe' s economic performance

US Dollar

in 2013 are IMF estimates source: IMF, World Economic Outlook

interpret The latest economic data suggest Zimbabwe has the economy actually shrinking over The Past year, as measured by gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, the average economic output per person.

I felt This might be due to the people in Zimbabwe, like a pressure on jobs and wages as companies fight through tough times.

But the budget for 2019 is only slightly lower than for 2017, Mugabe's last year in office.

So, although the people in Zimbabwe feel the impact of the recent decline, it is not possible to argue from these data That The Situation is significantly worse than under the previous administration.

But, another important measure of the overall health of an economy is the amount of investment by companies.

This is greatly decreased, since 2017. As a percentage of the value of the economy, it was almost Three Times higher than the planned value for the year 2019.

the government has accused The international sanctions,

These sanctions target top officials and state-owned companies, and tells US That they will not be removed until meaningful political reform take place.

Rising prices in Zimbabwe-consumer price index source: Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe

When It Comes to how the people in Zimbabwe, ordinary really feel about the economic situation, it is price-Inflation , the more direct impact on their daily lives, than the General growth or investment data.

by the end of 2017, when Mr Mugabe was removed from office, the annual Inflation rate is the rate at which prices Rise , was up by 5%.

the Inflation remained low until the end of 2018, but then rose sharply through The First half of 2019, to reach an annualised rate of 176% in June.

This is a measure of General consumer prices in the economy as a whole.

Professor Steve Hanke , an Economics expert at the Johns Hopkins University, the independently calculated rates of Inflation , says That it is significantly higher than the official figures, in the case of 611% in August.

If only the Food reduced prices, the picture looks even more precarious.

The annual Food Inflation figure published in the June 2019 was measured at More Than 250%, according to the UN.

Food price Inflation source: World Food program 2019-data

So the cost of the Food on the shelves will be increased, the fuel is scarce and

The UN World Food programme (WFP) has appealed funds for Food aid, for what he calls the country's "worst ever famine-crisis".

It is said That people in Zimbabwe were strongly influenced by

The government also has its own currency, after a decade of relying on the US dollar.

This prompted an outcry from many workers who would prefer to be paid in US dollars, and their wages are shrunk, in The Past year due to Inflation .

Has seen Zimbabwe poor?

in Spite of the currently gloomy economic environment, there were times under Mr Mugabe's years in power That were far worse.

2007-09, the country went through a period of extreme Inflation , The Local currency is worthless.

At one point in 2008, the annual rate of Inflation of over 500 billion percent, according to the UN, and it was also the high level of unemployment.

"In 2008, there was some Food in the shelves. It was much worse on the ground than it is now," says the BBC Shingai Nyoka in Harare.

It was a widespread unrest and That the government approach, which saw large-scale killings and arrests by the security forces.

"Mr Mugabe inherited a stable, functioning economy That for The First 15 years of his reign, he built, creating a thriving black Middle Class ," says Mrs Nyoka.

"But for The Last two decades of his reign, ruin the economy. In his two years in office, the current government is still trying to fix problems with the legacy of Mr Mugabe's rule. "

What say the government?

Since the new government has undertaken a series of cost-saving measures - expenditure savings-reduce some of the wages in the public sector and the introduction of new taxes, he says, are to get the economy back on track.

It has also been said, it is open for business after years of international isolation and a high level of expenditure under Mr Mugabe.

He says the reforms are necessary to the creation of a favourable environment for investors, create jobs.

But the Zimbabwean economist Godfrey Kanyenze said the current government's austerity policies have "creates chronically high Inflation , and impoverished the majority of the people in Zimbabwe".

reality check, robert mugabe, zimbabwe after mugabe

Source of news: bbc.com