Zimbabwe's Infrastructure : A Continental Perspective

Pushak, Nataliya ; Briceñ ; o-Garmendia, Cecilia M.

World Bank, Washington, DC

关键词: ABUSE OF MONOPOLY POWER;    ACCESS TO ELECTRICITY;    ACCESS TO WATER;    ACCESSIBILITY;    ACCIDENTS;   

RP-ID  :  64739

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

Despite general economic decline andpower supply deficiencies, infrastructure made a modest netcontribution of less than half a percentage point toZimbabwe's improved per capita growth performance inrecent years. Raising the country's infrastructureendowment to that of the region's middle-incomecountries could boost annual growth by about 2.4 percentagepoints. Zimbabwe made significant progress in infrastructurein its early period as an independent state. The countrymanaged to put in place a national electricity network andestablish regional interconnection in the power sector; tobuild an extensive network of roads for countrywideaccessibility and integration into the regional transportcorridors; to lay the water and sewerage system; and to makeprogress on building dams and tapping the significantirrigation potential. Unfortunately, at present thecross-cutting issue across all these sectors isZimbabwe's inability to maintain and rehabilitate theexisting infrastructure since the country became immersed ineconomic and political turmoil in the late 1990s. Neglect ofall sectors due to the crisis has resulted in a generalizedlack of new investment (in the power and water sectors inparticular), and the accumulation of a huge rehabilitationagenda. Quality of service has declined across the board.The power system has become unjustifiably costly,inefficient, and unreliable. The condition of roads hasdeteriorated to the point that Zimbabwe became a bottleneckon the North-South transport corridor. Rural connectivityhardly exists. Failure to treat potable water, along withthe deterioration of the water, sanitation, and garbagedisposal systems, was responsible for the spread of cholerain 2008. By 2010 cholera affected most areas of the countryand posed a health threat to neighboring countries. Lookingahead, Zimbabwe faces a number of important infrastructurechallenges. Zimbabwe's most pressing challenges lie inthe power and water sectors. Inefficient and unreliablepower supply poses major risks to the economy, while themaintenance and upgrading of existing power infrastructureno longer looks to be affordable. At the same time,overhauling the water and sewerage system is imperative forcurbing the public health crisis.