The African Development Bank Group has approved a $4 million grant to support Zimbabwe’s efforts to clear its debt arrears and re‑engage with the international financial community. The funding will finance the Zimbabwe Arrears Clearance Dialogue Enhancement Project (ZACDEP), designed to strengthen dialogue and reforms needed to advance the country’s arrears clearance process.
Zimbabwe’s public debt stood at about $21.5 billion at the end of 2025, including $11.7 billion in external debt, with $7.7 billion owed to multilateral and bilateral creditors. This heavy burden has severely limited the country’s access to external financing and constrained public investment. The new grant, provided under the African Development Fund’s Transition Support Facility Pillar III, builds on the earlier Support for Arrears Clearance and Governance Enhancement (SACAGE) project, which established structured dialogue platforms and sector working groups to sustain engagement on reforms and debt resolution.
ZACDEP will run from June 2026 to May 2029 and includes three components. The first focuses on enhanced dialogue through structured platforms covering economic growth, governance, and land tenure reforms, supported by advisory services and diplomatic outreach. The second strengthens capacity by upgrading debt management systems, reinforcing parliamentary oversight, and bolstering anti‑corruption measures. The third covers project management, including coordination, procurement, financial oversight, and monitoring. Importantly, the project incorporates a gender‑responsive approach, recognizing that prolonged debt distress has disproportionately affected women and young people.
The approval follows the IMF’s Staff‑Monitored Programme endorsed in April 2026, seen as a key step toward broader debt resolution. It also reflects progress in macroeconomic stabilization under Zimbabwe’s National Development Strategy. Eyerusalem Fasika, the Bank’s Country Manager for Zimbabwe, emphasized that clearing arrears is the gateway to unlocking urgently needed development financing.
The African Development Bank remains Zimbabwe’s lead partner in the arrears clearance process and will continue to play a catalytic role in supporting the country’s re‑engagement with the international financial community.
