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Zim govt official wants developmental state discourse rekindled
US Embassy
January 31, 2013

A cabinet minister wants Zimbabweans to rekindle the conversation proposed by the inclusive government in 2009 about adopting the democratic developmental state to spur economic development.

"We need to raise a discourse of a democratic developmental state, we need politics of development not politics of power," said Honorable Gorden Moyo, Minister of State Enterprises and Parastatals, during a Food for Thought discussion session held at the United States Embassy's Public Affairs Section on Tuesday.

"It is naïve to say that we are a democracy when people are hungry and unemployed, hence the notion of a democratic developmental state. A democratic developmental state is about development and democracy. These are twin processes, so let's adopt this as a philosophy for ourselves."

Honorable Moyo spoke about the coalition government formed as a result of the Global Political Agreement in September 2008; at that time the government adopted a policy framework designed to turn Zimbabwe into a progressive developmental state.

He explained that the Short Term Economic Recovery Program (STERP) of 2009 was described as "an emergency short term stabilization program, whose key goals are to stabilize the macro and micro-economy, recover the levels of savings, investment and growth, and lay the basis of a more transformative mid-term to long-term economic program that will turn Zimbabwe into a progressive developmental State."

Development experts suggest that the developmental state model is the main reason for the rapid economic success of Japan and the East Asian tigers (Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and South Korea). The minister contrasted that model with politics for the purpose of power which he claims is hindering the development of most African economies today.

Honorable Moyo, a Chevening Scholar working towards his doctoral thesis on African Leadership, New Economic Partnership for African Development (NEPAD) and the African Peer Review Mechanism, expressed concern about the absence of continued debate and the lack of implementation of good policies.

"The problem we have in Zimbabwe and in Africa generally is that we have beautiful policies yet we fall short in the implementation of these policies," said the cabinet minister. "Hence we need scholars of Africa to understand the problems of Africa and then think about the solutions."

The self proclaimed "afro-optimist" said he foresaw a bright future if the Zimbabwe adopted the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) in order to promote transparency and accountability in Zimbabwe.

"I believe in order to build a strong base for corporate governance in Zimbabwe, we need to be part of the APRM and the sooner we accede to it the better," said Moyo, noting its importance for Zimbabwe if it is "to catch up with the rest of the world." Launched in 2003 by the African Union, the APRM is a program voluntarily adopted by the member states of the African Union to promote and re-enforce high standards of governance.

"Zimbabwe is now back-pedaling and it is sad that we are now talking about catching up to Mozambique and Zambia, when we used to be second to South Africa in terms of economic growth, " said the minister.

The APRM process, adopted by thirty African states, focuses on key areas of Democracy and Good Governance by ensuring national constitutions reflect the democratic ethos of a nation, providing for demonstrably accountable governance, and promoting political representation that guarantees all citizens participate in the political process in a free and fair political environment. Fourteen member countries have been peer reviewed between January 2006 and January 2011.

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