1983 Edition

Agriculture

main crops — corn, tobacco, cotton; net importer of most major agricultural products

main crops — tobacco, corn, sugar, cotton; livestock; self-sufficient in foodstuffs

Aid

economic commitments — Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF (197081), $446 million; US, including Ex-Im (1980-82), $165 million

Airfields

128 total, 114 usable; 12 with permanent-surface runways; 1 with runways over 3,659 m, 4 with runways 2,440-3,659 m, 19 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

457 total, 431 usable; 19 with permanent-surface runways; 2 with runways over 3,659 m, 3 with runways 2,440-3,659 m, 29 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Branches

Army, Air Force

legislative authority resides in a Parliament consisting of a 100-member House of Assembly (with 20 seats reserved for whites) and a 40-member Senate (10 elected by white members of the House, 14 elected by the other members of the House; 10 chiefs, 5 from Mashonaland and 5 from Matabeleland, elected by members of the Council of Chiefs; 6 appointed by the President, on the advice of the Prime Minister); executive authority lies with a Cabinet led by the Prime Minister; the High Court is the superior judicial authority

Zimbabwe National Army, Zimbabwe Air Force, Police Support Unit, People's Militia

Budget

(1982) revenue $1,259 million (est), expenditures $1,608 million (est.)

FY82/83— revenues $1.757 billion, expenditures $2.223 billion, deficit $466 million

Capital

Harare

Civil air

9 major transport aircraft

21 major transport aircraft

Communists

negligible

Elections

at discretion of Prime Minister but must be held before expiration of five-year electoral mandate Political parties and leaders: Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU), Robert Mugabe; Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU), Joshua Nkomo; Republican Front (RF), Ian Smith; independent white (former RF) members of Parliament, Chris Andersen; United African National Council (UANC), Bishop Abel Muzorewa; others failed to win any seats in Parliament

Electric power

1,975,000 kW capacity (1983); 11.0 billion kWh produced (1983), 1,735 kWh per capita

1,610,000 kW capacity (1983); 7.5 billion kWh produced (1983), 895 kWh per capita

Ethnic divisions

about 97% African (over 77% members of Shona-speaking subtribes, 19% speak Ndebele); about 3% white, 1% mixed and Asian

Exports

$1,057 million (f.o.b., 1982); copper, zinc, cobalt, lead, tobacco

$1.312.1 billion (f.o.b., 1982), including net gold sales and reexports; tobacco, asbestos, cotton, copper, tin, chrome, gold, nickel, meat, clothing, sugar

Fiscal year

calendar year Communications

1 July-30 June Communications

GDP

$2.9 billion (1981), $476 per capita; real growth rate, -1.8% (1981)

$7. 1 billion (1982), $880 per capita; real growth 12% (1980 and 1981), 2% (1982)

Government leaders

Rev. Canaan Sodindo BANANA, President; Robert MUGABE, Prime Minister

Highways

36,840 km total; 5,596 km paved, 8,374 km crushed stone, gravel, or stabilized soil; 22,870 km improved and unimproved earth

85,237 km total; 12,243 km paved, 28,090 km crushed stone, gravel, stabilized soil: 23,097 km improved earth; 21,807 km unimproved earth

Imports

$830 million (f.o.b., 1982); machinery, transport equipment, foodstuffs, fuels, manufactures

$1.472.1 billion (f.o.b. 1982); machinery, petroleum products, wheat, transport equipment

Inland waterways

2,250 km, including Zambezi River, Luapula River, Lake Tanganyika; Mpulungu is small port on Lake Tanganyika

Lake Kariba is a potential line of communication

Labor force

1,048,000(1981); 35% agriculture; 25% mining, manufacturing, construction; 40% transport and services

Land boundaries

3,017 km People

Language

English (official); ChiShona and Si Ndebele

Legal system

Roman-Dutch

Literacy

45-55%

Major industries

transport, construction, foodstuffs, beverages, chemicals, textiles, and fertilizer

mining, steel, textiles, chemicals, and vehicles

Major trade partner

South Africa

Major trade partners

EC, Japan, China, South Africa

Member of

Af DB, Commonwealth, FAO, G-77, GATT, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, INTERPOL, ITO, NAM, OAU, SADCC, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO Economy

Military budget

for fiscal year ending 30 June 1983, $343 million; 11.9% of central government budget

Military manpower

males 15-49, 1,413,000; 737,000 fit for military service Land 391,090 km2; 40% arable (of which 6% cultivated), 60% extensive grazing; of this total — 48% worked communally by Africans, 39% owned by Europeans (farmed by modern methods), 7% national land, 6% other

males 15-49, 1,788,000; 1,098,000 fit for military service

Monetary conversion rate

1.3519 Zambia kwachas=US$l (October 1983)

1.05 Zimbabwean dollars=US$l (October 1983)

Nationality

noun — Zimbabwean(s); adjective — Zimbabwean

Official name

Republic of Zimbabwe

Organized labor

about one-third of European wage earners are unionized, but only a small minority of Africans

Pipelines

1,724 km crude oil

8 km refined products

Political subdivisions

eight provinces

Population

8,325,000 (July 1984), average annual growth rate 3.0%

Railroads

1,204 km, all 1.067-meter gauge; 13 km double track

3,394 km 1.067meter gauge; 42 km double track; 12% of railroad is electrified

Religion

50% syncretic (part Christian, part indigenous beliefs), 25% Christian, 24% indigenous beliefs, a few Muslim

Suffrage

universal over age 18; for at least seven years after independence (1980), white, mixed, and Asians vote on a separate roll for 20 seats in the House of Assembly

Telecommunications

facilities are among the best in Sub-Saharan Africa; high-capacity radio relay connects most larger towns and cities; 60,500 telephones; ( 1 . 1 per 1 00 popl. ); 9 AM, 2 FM, and 10 TV stations; 1 Indian Ocean satellite station Defense Forces

system is one of the best in Africa; consists of radio-relay links, open-wire lines, and radiocommunication stations; principal center Salisbury, secondary center Bulawayo; 224,500 telephones (3.0 per 100 popl.); 8 AM, 15 FM, and 8 TV stations; satellite station under construction Defense Forces

Type

independent; a British-style parliamentary democracy

Voting strength

(February 1980 elections) ZANU (also known as ZANU-PF), 57 seats; ZAPU (also known as the Patriotic Front), 20 seats; RF, 9 seats; independents, 1 1 seats; UANC, 3 seats