President Emmerson Mnangagwa has launched his re-election campaigns, starting with a rally in Chipinge on June 24 and another in Bulilima on July 1. At both rallies, President Mnangagwa has told supporters that his government has presided over economic progress.
We checked some key claims that he made in his speeches.
CLAIM 1: The mining sector has grown to over US$12 billion
VERDICT: False
Mnangagwa said: “In 2018, when we came in as the Second Republic, our mining sector was only US$3,7 billion. We are now above US$12 billion and it will continue growing because we are now focusing on what we have.”
FACT: While the mining industry has indeed grown under his leadership, it is not yet valued at US$12 billion as he claimed. Measuring the size of the mining industry by export value, the industry exported goods worth US$5.6 billion in 2022 from US$5 billion in 2021, according to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe. In 2023, the Chamber of Mines expects exports worth US$6 billion.
While the Government has targeted exports of US$12 billion in 2023, this is yet to be reached. Mnangagwa’s claim is therefore rated false.
Credit: EPA-EFE
CLAIM 2: Zimbabwe has recorded a record wheat crop
VERDICT: True
Mnangagwa said Zimbabwe has produced enough wheat to meet the country’s needs. According to Grain Marketing Board data, Zimbabwe produced 375 000 tonnes of wheat in 2022, the highest on record.
The figure is corroborated by the Food Crop Contractors Association, a grouping of private traders and millers who fund 76% of Zimbabwe’s wheat crop. National Foods, the biggest buyer of grain in the country, has reported that Zimbabwe had “a substantial local wheat crop” in the past season, although it gives no data on how much wheat it bought. However, the bigger wheat crop does not mean that Zimbabwe will not import any other wheat. According to the Grain Millers Association, the country will always import some wheat to blend with local wheat for the manufacture of bread.
