So far my Zimbabwe posts have not touched on the economic situation during my visit. That was intentional, as I think there is so much more to the country than the financial and economic issues the citizens must perpetually endure.
Things are never really great here economically but my term here has coincided with what most people I speak with say is the worst time yet.
On October 1, 2018, only a few days before I arrived, the government’s new finance minister made an announcement concerning currency. I’m not going to get into that as a quick Google search will tell you anything you could wish to know.
On October 5th, I arrived in Harare. Just as the fuel shortage was escalating to levels not seen since 2008. At the same time, a panic about the availability of basic grocery availability started and people started buying up everything in the shops, hoarding to avoid future shortfalls. The unfortunate side effect was basically a self-fulfilling prophecy – the hoarding actually produced the scarcity of resources.
The queues in the supermarkets were insanely long. Stores had to limit how many items could be purchased for much of the stock. Bread was one of the things that had to be limited, and it was often not available at all for the first few weeks I was here. Even still, bread is usually limited to 2 loaves per purchase and rarely hits the shelves – people line up and get it right from the flats as it comes from the back.
Fuel queues became reasonable for the middle portion of my stay, most of November. But by the end of November my travel plans to see Great Zimbabwe were quashed because fuel was once again scarce, and Great Zimbabwe is more than a tank of petrol or diesel away from Harare.
The second weekend in December it was slightly improved and I did get out of the city to see the Chinhoyi Caves. On the way back into the city my friend and I came across a reasonable queue and we were able to almost fill her tank. This was the only time in my stay that I participated in a fuel queue. It was a short line and only took an hour. I took these photos to document the experience and the first was taken at 2:57 as we arrived while the last was at 4pm when we got to the pump.
People have asked me how I have handled the situation in Zimbabwe and I respond that I didn’t have to deal with issues at all. I stayed in an upscale neighbourhood and my Airbnb host, now friend, shared her friends, transportation and the benefits of her position with me. I was given an allowance in US$ from my NGO so I did not experience currency issues. I was given a ride to and from work as well so transportation was no concern. In short, my entire stay in Harare was one of privilege, the story of my life actually.
A Travelling Accountant 