Echoes of Skepticism: Why Zimbabwe’s Economic Boom Faces Doubt

It was on Saturday, 27th June 2026, that a seemingly ordinary post on X ignited a debate far bigger than anyone expected. A young Zimbabwean lady remarked on the surge of new restaurants opening in Harare, pointing to the newly opened Tiger’s Milk next to KFC, overlooking the recently opened Plato Coffee Shop on Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa Road. Her observation captured something many had quietly noticed for the past three years: expensive restaurants have been springing up across the city, catering to a rising middle class eager to experience fine dining and cuisine from around the world.

In her own words, Faffie said, “Every month there is new restaurant opening in Harare, we haven’t gone to Salt or Wonderful Fresh yet now there is Tiger’s Milk💀😭💀🙌🏾”

The message was met with a negative reply from a Zimbabwean man, Zviko, based in the USA who replied, “This is the kind of thing that gives the illusion that Zim is developing when it actually isn’t.” Many people agreed with the man, and most of them were not based in Zimbabwe but migrants who left the country for greener pastures. On the other hand, a lot of Zimbabweans staying in Zimbabwe were in disagreement with him, saying Zimbabwe was surely developing.

The evidence on the ground is clear, Zimbabwe is developing very fast, a position that has been agreed upon by various economists and organisations like the IMF and World Bank. Zimbabwe has been one of the fastest-growing economies in Southern Africa for the past few years.

The sentiment that the diasporans hold is not held by them alone. An average African thinks that Zimbabwe is the poorest country in Africa and one of the worst countries in Africa. This has been caused by two decades of a sour relationship with the West, and many times Zimbabwe was mentioned in the Western press, it was mostly negative coverage.

I remember in 2019 when there were economic hiccups in Zimbabwe, there was a two-day bread shortage that was covered by almost all the big Western media houses. In the same year, at the onset of a pandemic, The Economist predicted that the Zimbabwe economy would collapse beyond the 2008 levels, something that baffled me. They would title the collapse with titles like worse than a country at war. In 2026, The Economist is describing the Zimbabwean economic growth with the term “Idiosyncratic.” This is merely because they cannot believe that Zimbabwe is growing.

In 2026, Zimbabwe’s GDP per capita is above $3000, placing it above the continent’s giants like Kenya, a country that is a regional powerhouse. In the mind of an average Kenyan citizen, they do not imagine such a Zimbabwe. A Zimbabwe known to people is a Zimbabwe experiencing hyperinflation and economic collapse, something that happened from 1998 to 2008.

The numbers speak for themselves. In 2025, Zimbabwe used the most cement in its history, and the record is being broken every year. The figure is double the national consumption recorded in 2019. Not only cement but fuel, food, and companies crossing the billion-dollar revenue mark. In 2025, they became 3. They could have been 4 if not for the troubles at Zimplats.

Why Zimbabwean Diasporans Follow Their African Counterparts

Stuck in the Past

When a country moves very fast, like what happened in China, a year is very big. In a year, countless companies and infrastructure could have been completed.

Misinformation

A lot of people grew their brand by talking about a failing Zimbabwe. The news of a growing Zimbabwe is bad for them, so they tend to look for news and information that reinforce their views.

Collapsed HealthCare System

After years of decline, Zimbabwe’s healthcare system is in shambles. In a country where the healthcare system is almost non-existent, a person cannot believe that the country is growing.

Infrastructure Gap

Years of infrastructure decline mean that without external funding, the road network in Zimbabwe will not modernize fast enough.

Income

Most Zimbabweans believe that the average salary in Zimbabwe is too little. An average salary of between $250 and $350 tallies with Zimbabwe’s GDP per capita range. The problems lie with comparing Zimbabwe with upper-middle-income or high-income countries.

Conlusion

With all this having been said, the Zimbabwean growth cannot be wished away. Zimbabwe has been used as clickbait on various social media platforms for a long time. Some people mention the name Zimbabwe to increase their viewers, thereby creating negativity which people will believe as the reality.

Many Zimbabweans born before 1980 get surprised when they learn Botswana is far more developed than Zimbabwe. It is because they are stuck in the past. They know a Botswana that was very poor, but that Botswana no longer exists. In less than 7 years to come, Zimbabwe will be an upper-middle-income country. The early stages of that are now. Early movers are taking note and investing.