To my fellow vendors, those who wake before the sun, who hustle through dust and doubt, who know the price of tomatoes better than the price of gold.
This is for you.
Because while the headlines say the economy is growing, your pockets still say otherwise. While the IMF forecasts 6 percent growth, your margins haven’t moved. While wheat breaks records, your bread still costs more than it should.
I write this not as a distant observer, but as someone who sees you — who knows that macroeconomic stability means nothing if it doesn’t reach your stall, your wallet, your child’s school fees. Zimbabwe is indeed moving. The economy is breathing again. But it has not yet spoken to the streets.
Let’s begin with the facts. Zimbabwe has recorded its highest wheat harvest in 59 years — 639,942 tonnes, far exceeding the national target and placing us alongside Ethiopia as one of only two African nations that are wheat self-sufficient.
Tobacco sales have broken records too.
Gold production is surging. Energy generation has surpassed 1,600 megawatts daily. David Whitehead Textiles is being resuscitated. Investors are returning, including Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote. The exchange rate is stable. The IMF sees promise.
These are not cosmetic wins. They are structural. They reflect policy discipline, improved coordination, and a willingness to reform. But they are also distant from the daily grind of the ordinary citizen. The truth is, the economic recovery has not yet been felt at the grassroots level. It has not translated into meaningful poverty reduction because there is always a time lag between stabilising macroeconomic fundamentals and achieving tangible national well-being.
That transformation will only take full effect when Zimbabwe adopts a single national currency. A sovereign currency is essential for establishing an independent monetary policy capable of determining the price and cost of money, on both the supply and demand sides. Only then will people begin to feel the benefits of economic recovery and enjoy equitable participation in national prosperity.
Until then, the cascade remains clogged. The informal sector, which employs the majority of Zimbabweans, remains excluded from formal credit systems. Small businesses still face red tape in registration and taxation. Vocational training lags behind industrial revival. Microfinance is either inaccessible or predatory. Investment remains concentrated in urban centres, leaving rural economies underpowered.
And corruption, often treated as a moral failing, is in fact a symptom of market dysfunction. It presents black spots in the economy. But as Zimbabwe recovers and new market systems emerge, dynamic, transparent, and rules-based, the incidence of corruption will naturally decline. Integrity follows functionality.
The wheat miracle offers a blueprint. Farmers received inputs and credit on time. Government collaborated with ZESA and ZINWA to ensure uninterrupted power and irrigation. Mechanisation and pest control measures boosted yields. Policy stability and planning, tracking 21 key enablers, ensured consistent productivity. This is how you build a cascade. This is how you make growth tangible.
The economy is moving. But now it must be felt. It must reach the vendor in Mbare, the seamstress in Gweru, the tuckshop owner in Norton. It must speak to the streets — not just the statistics. Stabilising the economy is not enough. It must walk among the people.
To my fellow vendors — this is your letter. Your struggle is not invisible. Your resilience is not anecdotal. You are the pulse that keeps Zimbabwe alive. And until the economy walks with you, it hasn’t truly arrived.
