Zimbabwe

D

Agriculture

Despite the government’s dismantling of the country’s well-developed commercial sector starting in 2000, agriculture remains one of the keys to Zimbabwe’s economic prosperity. In 2005 agriculture (including forestry and fishing) accounted for 18 percent of GDP. The country’s main commercial products are tobacco, sugar, and various grains. Citrus fruit, cut flowers, cotton, and coffee are smaller but still important products. Cattle ranching is important in the southwest. Subsistence farmers grow corn, cassava, and beans, and raise goats, sheep, and cattle.

E

Mining

Zimbabwe has a long tradition of mining, going back before European colonization. The country contains a wide range of minerals, especially in and around the Great Dyke. Zimbabwe’s chief mineral exports include gold, nickel, and chromite. Coal is an important power source.

F

Energy

Zimbabwe is rich in coal and hydroelectric resources. Coal-burning thermal power stations produced 51 percent of the country’s electricity in 2003, while the remaining 49 percent came from hydroelectric facilities at the Kariba Dam.

G

Transportation

Zimbabwe’s major rail line runs along the country’s central plateau between the cities of Harare and Bulawayo. Bulawayo is linked by rail to the major cities of South Africa by way of Botswana, and to the copper-mining towns of Zambia via Victoria Falls. Spurs lead to the Mozambican ports of Beira and Maputo. The country has an extensive network of roads, of which 19 percent (2002) are paved. Harare has an international airport, and smaller airfields serve other cities and the main tourist areas, including Victoria Falls. Air Zimbabwe is the national airline.

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H

Communications

The state-owned Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation operates a national television station and numerous national radio stations broadcasting in English, Shona, Ndebele, and other African languages. The Chronicle, published in Bulawayo, and The Herald, published in Harare, are Zimbabwe’s largest English-language daily newspapers. Both are government-owned and -monitored. Dozens of nondaily registered periodicals and newspapers, most in English, are published, as well.

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