Source: Govt finalises arrears, debt clearance roadmap – herald
Debra Matabvu
Senior Reporter
ZIMBABWE has finalised a roadmap for its debt and arrears clearance programme and is targeting early next year to begin repaying outstanding obligations to international creditors.
This is a major step towards restoring access to global financing and the plan follows high-level engagements between the Ministry of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ), creditors and potential finance sponsors during the IMF-World Bank Spring Meetings held in Washington DC last month.
Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube said the discussions helped crystallise the structure and sequencing of the arrears clearance process, including the mobilisation of financial backers to support the programme.
“During the Spring Meetings in Washington DC, we had extensive engagements with development partners, creditors, as well as IMF and World Bank officials, to concretise our roadmap for arrears clearance,” Prof Ncube said in an interview.
Central to the strategy is the identification of “sponsors” — typically foreign governments, international financial institutions or private financiers — who can provide bridging finance and technical support to help Zimbabwe clear its arrears.
Such sponsor-backed arrangements are critical because they enable countries in arrears to access short-term funding to settle overdue obligations, thereby unlocking fresh lines of credit and re-engagement with international lenders.
Zimbabwe is seeking at least US$2,5 billion in bridging finance to clear arrears owed to multilateral institutions such as the World Bank, African Development Bank and the European Investment Bank.
“We need champions who can support us with bridging funding for the US$2,5 billion. We are engaging various countries on that and we met some of them while we were in Washington,” said Prof Ncube.
“So the process of identifying these champions, these advocates, is ongoing alongside the staff-monitored programme.”
The roadmap, which will form a fourth pillar of the country’s arrears clearance and debt resolution strategy, will outline financing mechanisms, repayment timelines and the modalities for engaging sponsors.
It complements the existing reform pillars, which include economic reforms, governance reforms and compensation of former farm owners.
A key prerequisite for the arrears clearance process is the successful completion of the IMF Staff-Monitored Programme (SMP), which Zimbabwe is currently implementing.
An SMP is a non-financial programme under which the IMF assesses a country’s economic policies and reforms without providing direct funding.
It is designed to build a track record of sound policy implementation, which is critical for rebuilding trust with creditors and unlocking future financial support.
“It is clear that the first order of business is to complete the Staff-Monitored Programme. We have already started and are pleased with the progress so far,” said Prof Ncube.
“We intend to complete the programme by year-end after three assessment reviews by the IMF. Once that is done, we will move to the arrears clearance phase.
“As we conduct this SMP programme, we are identifying champions who can advocate for Zimbabwe’s case for debt relief and arrears clearance.”
He said the process is progressing alongside internal reforms under the three established pillars, with the addition of the fourth pillar focusing on the technical “mechanics” of clearing arrears.
“In addition to the three existing pillars, we are introducing a fourth one that deals with the mechanics of arrears clearance — including how we identify sponsors, structure bridging loans and secure support from institutions such as the World Bank,” he said.
Zimbabwe’s external debt remains significant, with Treasury figures showing it stood at US$12,4 billion as of September 2024.
Of this, US$6,3 billion is owed to bilateral creditors, while US$3,2 billion is owed to multilateral institutions.
A large portion of this debt is in arrears, with penalties accounting for US$2,7 billion of multilateral debt and US$4,8 billion of bilateral obligations.
Authorities say clearing these arrears is critical for normalising relations with international financial institutions and unlocking concessional funding needed to support economic growth and development.
Zimbabwe is drawing on international precedents, with countries such as Greece, Zambia and Mozambique having successfully utilised sponsor-backed financing arrangements to resolve debt challenges and restore access to global capital markets.
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