Received:
2026-05-15 | Accepted:
2026-08-30 | Published:
2026-09-30
Title
Challenges of moving towards sustainable socio-economic development in Zimbabwe
Abstract
The goal of policy implementation is to translate policy intentions into desired outcomes. However, Zimbabwe has adopted elaborate policies over the years aimed at achieving sustainable development, yet persistent socio-economic challenges of poverty, unemployment and inequality persist. Therefore, the novelty of this paper lies in its approach to addressing policy implementation gaps in Zimbabwe's sustainable development trajectory. The paper examines why socio-economic challenges persist despite Zimbabwe's adoption of the Sustainable Development Agenda and national development policies. Hence, qualitative methods were used to examine gaps in policy implementation. Accordingly, government policy documents were analysed, complemented by key informant interviews to gather insights. Findings establish that Zimbabwe’s implementation architecture for the Sustainable Development Agenda, including national development policies, is characterised by fragmented governance and a weak alignment with the social and economic indicators of sustainable development. Moreover, policy implementation is fraught with challenges, including limited fiscal space, exclusionary governance, reliance on primary commodities, fiscal indiscipline, corruption and an informal economy. Therefore, the paper formulates recommendations to build a model for transitioning towards sustainable socio-economic development, including governance reforms, enhanced public participation in policymaking, formalisation of the economy and targeting social indicators in policy implementation.
Keywords
policy implementation, social sustainability, sustainable economic growth, sustainable development, Zimbabwe
JEL classifications
O10
, O55
URI
http://jssidoi.org/ird/article/279
DOI
Pages
225-239
Funding
Funding. The research leading to the results is funded by the University of Johannesburg, School of Public Management, Governance and Public Policy, South Africa.
This is an open access issue and all published articles are licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
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