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As Zimbabweans prepare for the festive shopping season — traditionally the country’s highest-spending period — renowned economist Prof. Mandivamba Rukuni has warned that the nation’s consumption habits mirror the opposite of what drives prosperity in advanced economies, deepening the country’s industrial decline and fuelling unemployment.
Speaking during a public dialogue, Prof. Rukuni said Zimbabwe’s heavy dependence on imported manufactured goods — including basic household items — reflects a structural failure to rebuild domestic production capacity.
Reflecting on a formative visit to the United States in 1981, he recalled being struck by how mass production and mass consumption of locally manufactured goods enabled even low-income Americans to buy appliances, vehicles and electronics.
“Mass production, mass processing and mass consuming your own goods is what allows the majority to enjoy low-cost, locally manufactured products,” he said. “Millionaires can import. But the basics should be produced at home.”
Instead, Rukuni noted, Zimbabweans are consuming imported goods “even at the lowest level — toothpicks, tomato sauce, biscuits,” a pattern incompatible with industrial revival.
REGIONAL AND GLOBAL CONTEXT: ZIMBABWE AN OUTLIER IN LOCAL MANUFACTURING SHARE
Zimbabwe’s import-heavy consumption stands in sharp contrast with global trends:
- South Africa sources over 70% of goods in major retail chains from domestic suppliers, according to Retail Industry South Africa data.
- Kenya maintains a 75–80% local manufacturing share for FMCGs (fast-moving consumer goods).
- Across Asia, the engine of global manufacturing, countries such as Vietnam and Indonesia consume over 85% locally produced household goods, according to UNIDO.
- By comparison, Zimbabwe’s manufacturing sector contributes less than 12–13% to GDP, far below the 30%+ typical of emerging industrial economies.
Rukuni argues that unless Zimbabwe reverses this structural imbalance, the economy will remain trapped in a cycle of low industrial output, high consumer costs and rising dependence on foreign production hubs.
BUY ZIMBABWE: FESTIVE IMPORT SPREE FURTHER BLEEDS LOCAL INDUSTRY
In November, Buy Zimbabwe Chairperson Munyaradzi Hwengwere called on citizens to make deliberate decisions that strengthen local industry — especially during the festive season when imports surge.
“When you spend your money in South Africa or China, it is their economy that succeeds, not your own. Don’t then cry when your children can’t find work,” he said, calling blind import consumption “feeding another child” while your own goes hungry.
Hwengwere warned that even casual purchases — such as imported potato crisps, juices, biscuits, Christmas decorations and clothing — are directly weakening Zimbabwean factories and costing local workers jobs.
“The economy is an outcome of what you do in the shop,” he said, urging consumers to shift habits during the busiest retail month of the year.
FESTIVE SHOPPING: A CRITICAL TEST FOR CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
Christmas spending typically spikes across Southern Africa:
- In South Africa, retail trade in December rises by 20–30%, according to Statistics SA.
- In Zambia, festive imports jump by 40% as urban households stock up on food and gifts.
- Zimbabwe’s own Christmas spending — though constrained by incomes — still sees sharp increases in clothing, groceries, appliances, beverages and cross-border purchases.
Economists say this period offers the greatest leverage for consumers to influence national economic direction.
If even one in four Zimbabwean households shifted half of their festive purchases to local products, Buy Zimbabwe estimates the result could create thousands of new industrial jobs within a year.
A CALL FOR INTENTIONAL SPENDING
As households prepare for Christmas, both Rukuni and Hwengwere argue that consumer choices represent one of the most overlooked economic levers. Without rebuilding industrial capacity — and without citizens choosing locally made goods — Zimbabwe will remain dependent on foreign production ecosystems.
“Mass production starts with mass consumption,” Rukuni said. “If we don’t buy local, we can’t build local.”
With December spending rising, the country’s economists say the next few weeks will reveal whether Zimbabweans are ready to support domestic industry — or continue strengthening the economies of others during the season of giving.
