HARARE – The World Bank (WB) is projecting the Zimbabwean economy to grow by 2.9% this year and 3.1% in 2022 despite the economic shocks exacerbated by Covid-19 pandemic.

WB’s 2021 economic forecast is against the southern African nation’s growth projection of 7.4%. The Bank also said Zimbabwe’s economy contracted by 10% last year. Again this is against the government’s projections that the economy will shrank by 4.1% in 2020.

Zimbabwe’s new economic blueprint, National Development Strategy 1: 2021-2025 which is the successor to the Transitional Stabilisation Programme aims to sustain a positive high economic growth of above 5% over the next 5 years.

Sub-Saharan Africa has been hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, with activity in the region shrinking by an estimated 3.7% last year, according to WB.

Growth is forecast to resume at a moderate average pace of 3% in 2021-22—essentially zero in per capita terms and well below previous projections—as persistent outbreaks in several countries continue to inhibit the recovery.