‘This is not what we expected’ – Zimbabweans reflect on hardships as nation marks 46th Independence Day commemoration

AS Zimbabwe marks its 46th Independence Day, the jubilant echoes of 1980 feel increasingly like a distant memory.

The national commemoration, slated for Maphisa, arrives at a time when the gap between the liberation promise and the lived reality has never felt wider.

For many, the “future” isn’t a destination of progress, it is a daily battle for survival.

In the bustling streets of Harare, the economic narrative is no longer written in growth percentages, but in the frantic “hustle.”

The emergence of a dollar-a-day economy reflects a system where formal employment has become a luxury, and the informal sector once a safety net is now the only net of employment left for many Zimbabweans.

In interviews conducted in the central business district (CBD), Newzimbabwe.com learned that the “future” which was promised is bleak, and slowly sinking, with most saying the economy is not growing.

“Things are not moving as we expected. It is becoming worse. The future is bleak, corrupt, and slowly sinking.

“We can try to dispute it, but the reality is that while the economy is technically ‘moving,’ it is divided,” said one interviewee, who requested anonymity.

After four and a half decades, the social fabric of the nation remains tied to an economy that many feel has left them behind.

With the growing resentment over the economy, the nostalgic feeling over the good times, when employment opportunities were still open, inflation still controlled and when the country was the breadbasket of Africa are the memories of the older generation.

This was when Zimbabwe was young and still growing, but the years turned into days of unemployment, inflation and corruption.

A Harare tout, Tafadzwa Ndoro, who has never known economic stability said that the economy is weighing on him, but freedom is what keeps him going.

“Our economy is struggling, prices are high, and jobs are scarce. Freedom is what keeps me going,” said Ndoro.

“We might not have much, but we have our independence. We will find ways to hustle, to make ends meet, but we won’t trade our freedom for anything. We fought for it, and we will keep fighting for it, ” he added.

Another Harare resident, Tapiwa Khupe, who still believes in the changing of the narrative said the country is growing, looking at the development which the government is doing outside the capital city.

“I still have faith that Zimbabwe will be good, looking at the development taking place, and the years of peace Zimbabwe has enjoyed proves it.

“There are so many developments which include roads and some of the buildings are being renovated and new companies are being opened. We hope, when we reach 50 years, our economy will be stable, “Khupe said.

Many youths facing growing unemployment, have found hope in selling airtime while some have taken to drug abuse which has led to addictions and health complications, among other vices.

A young woman, Tariro Mangesi, expressed hopelessness amid a tinkering economy.

“It is painful, I have to hustle for myself and my family to survive. If I don’t work noone will.

“What I hear from my parents, what Zimbabwe used to be, and what it is now, these are two different stories and realities. The realities we are living in right now are terrible and hard,” Mangesi said.

A better Zimbabwe is what Mary Khumalo still believes will be tomorrow but the reality of what it is, is a painful vision of lessons learned of the decisions taken in the last 45 years.

“The gains of the independence left us in the past. What we truly have in our economy is the impact of our poor decisions. The realities are hitting in our faces. Look at the bad roads, overflowing raw sewer and the dilapidated buildings. There are no formal jobs to keep half of the Zimbabweans at work.

“Maybe tomorrow, there will be a better Zimbabwe, but now it is all gloom and doom. These last 45 years are a reminder that all is not well for us,” Khumalo said.

From the Bond Notes of 2016—initially marketed as an export incentive—to the RTGS dollar and the subsequent Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG) introduced in 2024, the cycle of currency reform has consistently eroded public trust and worsened the plight of ordinary Zimbabweans who keep singing “Not Yet Uhuru’. Independence is just but a mirage.