Opinion: 4 ways the US can help Zimbabwe

Aid should be used strategically to encourage positive reforms.

Todd MossOctober 3, 2009 08:31Updated May 30, 2010 12:09

A boy walks at a food aid distribution center in Chirumanzi, 155 miles southeast of Harare, Jan. 15, 2009. An estimated 5 million Zimbabweans, about 40 percent of the population, survived on food aid in the first half of 2009. (Philimon Bulawayo/Reuters)

[Editor's Note: This is an abridged version of the testimony delivered to the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on African Affairs on Sept. 30 by Todd Moss, vice president of the Center for Global Development.]

WASHINGTON — Zimbabwe has experienced an economic and political trauma not unlike a major conflict. Over the past decade Zimbabweans have fallen back to an average income level not seen since the 1950s.

The tragedy of Zimbabwe, of course, is that this economic collapse is entirely man-made. Since September 2008 the country has been administered by an interim unity government that was forced on Robert Mugabe by regional leaders following the flawed March 2008 elections and a brutal campaign of violence against the Movement for Democratic Change and its supporters. We should be clear: Even in an environment of intense intimidation and repression, Morgan Tsvangirai won those elections.

The current arrangement is highly imperfect, not least because the men responsible for destroying the economy, unleashing the violence, and denying the will of the voters are still in positions of power. Mugabe is still surrounded by men who have every reason to try to cling to power and grab what they can. The coalition government is thus highly fragile and has made halting progress. However, it is critical to recognize that the situation on the ground is far better than it was a year ago. Tsvangirai is prime minister and there are credible and capable people from his party in charge of key ministries, most notably finance, power, and health.

Policy changes implemented by the minister of finance represent a clear break with the past and have stabilized the macroeconomic climate. Inflation is under control and the poisonous influence of the central bank has been marginalized. The country may register positive economic growth for the first time since 1998. But an upturn is far from certain and far from robust.

I believe the United States should support this positive progress, while still remaining clear-eyed about the risks ahead. The challenge for U.S. policy is to continue to support recovery and the restoration of democracy while still maintaining pressure on the negative elements.

A passive wait-and-see approach is a recipe for failure. The unity government can only survive if it shows forward momentum and, given the depths of the country’s plunge, assistance from the international community is essential.