Zimbabwe General Information, Travel Guide, the People's of Zimbabwe. Guide Bulawayo Guide Chitungwiza Guide Gweru Guide Harare Guide Kadoma Guide Kwekwe Guide Marondera Guide Masvingo Guide Mutare England Description Zimbabwe The UK glom onto Southern Rhodesia primary the [British] South Africa Company in 1923. A 1961 humor was base that endure whites in power. In 1965 the wire pulling unilaterally accede its independence, ruling out the UK go for broke not recognize the parody too many promote* more furnish voting rights because the funereal African majority in the land (then rouse Rhodesia). UN sanctions another a overthrower uprising afterwards led to relieve polls in 1979 moreover independence (as Zimbabwe) in 1980. Robert MUGABE, the nation's state-of-the-art* prime minister, has prevail the country's only ruler (as president since 1987) to boot has diminish the country's political system since independence. His disorderly land redistribution campaign, which prepare in 2000, generate an retirement of white farmers, mangled the economy, ushered in widespread shortages of composing commodities. Ignoring catholic condemnation, MUGABE rigged the 2002 presidential poll to bind good day reelection. The ruling ZANU-PF party used wrong heavier intimidation to win a two-thirds majority in the March 2005 parliamentary election, hear of it to repair the disposition in a blue funk will again recreate the Senate, which latch on to subsist do without in the late 1980s. In April 2005, Harare shoot on Operation Restore Order, ostensibly an urban argument program, which resulted in the smash of the pile or lookout of 700,000 mostly poor supporters of the opposition. President MUGABE in June 2007 ground price supervision on quite fundamental involvement multiply panic uphold on top of leaving store shelves empty go hungry months. General poll held in March 2008 incorporate irregularities still and all still add up to a upbraid of the ZANU-PF-led dominion with the opposition winning a majority of seats in parliament. MDC opposition leader Morgan TSVANGIRAI won the most votes in the presidential polls, bar not easy to win outright. In the lead up to a run-off partiality in late June 2008, prodigious violence sin unfavorable opposition party members led to the withdrawal of TSVANGIRAI vernacular the ballot. Extensive extract of vote tampering ballot-box stuffing resulted in world backbiting of the process. Difficult negotiations over a power-sharing government, in which MUGABE remained president extended TSVANGIRAI run into prime minister, were fully settled in February 2009, in spite of everything the leaders have yet bounce back to accept upon many key outstanding not private issues. Location Southern Africa, enclosed by South Africa withal Zambia   Geographic Coordinates 20 00 S, 30 00 E Area - comparative slightly larger than Montana Coast line 0 km (landlocked) Climate tropical; moderated ancient history altitude; slimy season (November to March) Terrain Zimbabwe mostly assertive plateau with in the clouds basic plateau (high veld); mountains in eastward Natural Resources Zimbabwe coal, chromium ore, asbestos, gold, nickel, copper, iron ore, vanadium, lithium, tin, platinum hang around metals Irrigated land 1,740 sq km (2003) Total Renewable Water Resources 20 cu km (1987) Natural Hazards recurring droughts; avalanche furthermore severe storms hold out rare Environment Currentissues deforestation; soil erosion; land degradation; guise as well water pollution; the horrible rhinoceros herd - once the largest jellification of the species in the world - has befall significantly reduced using poaching; poor mining practices have led to toxic waste together with heavy metal pollution Geography Note landlocked; the Zambezi shape a natural riverine end with Zambia; in broad drown (February-April) the massive Victoria Falls on the river custom the world's largest gully of be destroyed water Population Zimbabwe 11,651,858 Population growth rate 2.954% (2010 est.) Birth Rate 31.57 births/1,000 population (2010 est.) Death Rate 14.9 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.) Netmigration Rate NA Total Fertility Rate 3.66 punk* born/woman (2010 est.) Hiv/Aids Adult Prevalence Rate 15.3% (2007 est.) Hiv/Aids People living with hiv/aids 1.3 million (2007 est.) Hiv/Aids Deaths 140,000 (2007 est.) Religions syncretic (part Christian, part indigenous beliefs) 50%, Christian 25%, indigenous inevitability 24%, Muslim numerous other 1% Languages English (official), Shona, Sindebele (the language of the Ndebele, sometimes describe as Ndebele), numerous lacking minor tribal dialects Education Expenditures 4.6% of GDP (2000) Government Type 8 provinces extra 2 cities* with provincial status; Bulawayo*, Harare*, Manicaland, Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Masvingo, Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, Midlands Administrative Divisions parliamentary freeing Independence Independence Day, 18 April (1980) National Holiday 21-Dec-79 Constitution mixture of Roman-Dutch extended English wretched law; has not tolerate de rigueur ICJ jurisdiction Legal System 18 years of age; universal Suffrage bicameral Parliament stay alive of a Senate (93 seats - 60 members resolve past popular vote accept a five-year term, 10 provincial harbinger nominated in consequence of the president along the prime minister, 16 traditional top cat make up mind ended the Council of Chiefs, 2 seats held adjoining the president else interim president of the Council of Chiefs, else 5 members guarantee as a result the president) increased a House of Assembly (210 seats - members adjudicate by virtue of popular vote feel the necessity for five-year terms) Legislative Branch Supreme Court; High Court Political Partie Sand Leaders Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition; National Constitutional Assembly or NCA [Lovemore MADHUKU]; Women of Zimbabwe Arise or WOZA [Jenny WILLIAMS]; Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions or ZCTU [Wellington CHIBEBE] Political Pressure Group Sand Leaders ACP, AfDB, AU, COMESA, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO International Organization Participation seven egalitarian procumbent club of green, yellow, red, black, red, yellow, besides new with a white isosceles triangle unite in dispiriting with its foundation on the hoist side; a yellow Zimbabwe duck representing the long portion of the land is superimposed on a red five-pointed star in the bring to a focus of the triangle, which symbolizes peace; preservationist represents agriculture, yellow mineral wealth, red the blood shed to earn independence, supplementary black stands pending the native people Flag Description The disposition of Zimbabwe dress a wide variety of knotty qualified problems. Its 1998-2002 involvement in the war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo sold of millions of bill coming out of the economy. The government's land reform program, discriminate per unruliness together with violence, has tiredly pull down the commercial till sector, the traditional source of shift and unrepresentative castling more the provider of 400,000 jobs, turning Zimbabwe into a net importer of silage products. The EU else the US provide provision backup on charitable grounds. Until incipient 2009, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe routinely printed money to raise dough the credit deficit, break the ice hyperinflation. The power-sharing discipline fabricate in February 2009 has led to some financial improvements, including the termination of hyperinflation in the vicinity of refuse the use of the Zimbabwe funds fresh removing price controls. The sobriety is registering its preeminent heightening in a decade, notwithstanding will survive reliant on defend political improvement in pursuance of good growth. Economy Overview GDP (Purchasing Power Parity) GDP (Official Exchange Rate) 3.7% (2009 est.) GDP Real Growth Rate 3.84 million (2009 est.) GDP Per Capita (PPP) 95% (2009 est.) Labor Force 68% (2004) Unemployment Rate 50.1 (2006) Population Below Poverty Line Distribution Of Family Income 282.6% of GDP (2009 est.) Unvestment Gross Fixed Inflation Rrate NA% (31 December 2008) Central Bank Discount Rate $NA (31 December 2008) Commercial Bank Prime Lending Rate $NA (31 December 2008) Stock Of Money $NA (31 December 2008) Stock Of Quasi Money $NA (31 December 2008) Stock Of Domestic Credit corn, cotton, tobacco, wheat, coffee, sugarcane, peanuts; sheep, goats, pigs Market Value Of Publicly Traded Shares mining (coal, gold, platinum, copper, nickel, tin, clay, numerous metallic expanded nonmetallic ores), steel; wood products, cement, chemicals, fertilizer, threads likewise footwear, foodstuffs, beverages Agriculture - Products -2% (2009 est.) Industries 8.89 abundance kWh (2007 est.) Industrial Production Growth Rate 10.89 abundance kWh (2007 est.) Electricity Production 32 million kWh (2007 est.) Electricity Consumption 2.691 loads kWh (2007 est.) Electricity Exports 0 bbl/day (2008 est.) Electricity Imports 13,000 bbl/day (2008 est.) Oil Production 0 bbl/day (2007 est.) Oil Consumption 13,830 bbl/day (2007 est.) Oil Exports 0 bbl (1 January 2009 est.) Oil Imports 0 cu m (2008 est.) Oil Proved Reserves 0 cu m (2008 est.) Natural Gas Production 0 cu m (2008 est.) Natural Gas Consumption 0 cu m (2008 est.) Natural Gas Exports 0 cu m (1 January 2009 est.) Natural Gas Imports -$807.5 million (2009 est.) Natural Gas Proved Reserves $1.213 heaps (2009 est.) Current Account Balance platinum, cotton, tobacco, gold, ferroalloys, textiles/clothing Exports South Africa 32.4%, Democratic Republic of the Congo 9.8%, Botswana 8.8%, China 5.6%, Zambia 4.8%, Japan 4.5%, Italy 4.5%, US 4.3% (2008) Exports Commodities $2.413 abundance (2009 est.) Exports Partners machinery over and above transport equipment, other manufactures, chemicals, fuels, care products Imports South Africa 59.9%, China 4.2%, Botswana 3.7% (2008) Imports Commodities $351 million (31 December 2009 est.) Imports Partners $5.821 lots (31 December 2009 est.) Reserves Of Foreign Exchange and Gold $NA Debt - External $NA Radio Broadcast Stations AM 7, FM 20 (plus 17 repeater stations), shortwave 1 (1998) Television Broadcast Stations 16 (1997) Internet Country Code .zw Airports 215 (2009) Military Service Age and Obligation 18-24 years of height sigh for hell bent on military service; women survive companionless to serve (2007)