…As Vision 2030 Looms
By Jonathan Mbiriyamveka
MAPHISA — With only five years left to achieve Vision 2030, President Emmerson Mnangagwa has announced sweeping reforms to Zimbabwe’s public service, warning that sluggish, disloyal, or unprofessional officials have no place in the Second Republic.
Speaking at the 46th Independence Day celebrations in Maphisa, the President unveiled a strengthened Integrated Results Based Management System (IRBMS), underpinned by Performance Contracting — a mechanism that ties public sector employment and rewards to measurable outcomes.
“It is urgent and critically important that our people be serviced by public sector officials who are devoted, patriotic, loyal, professional and agile, for impactful results and the speedy implementation of people-centred projects,” Mnangagwa said.
Performance contracting is not new in Zimbabwe. It was introduced in select ministries in 2019 but faced resistance from civil service unions and uneven implementation.
The President’s latest pronouncement signals a nationwide, mandatory rollout with sharper teeth.
The cocktail of reform measures, Mnangagwa explained, “will result in timely service delivery within Government institutions, in line with people and market needs.”
To accompany the tougher performance regime, the government has also introduced a comprehensive Remuneration Framework for civil servants, alongside an all-inclusive Retirement Planning Programme.
“This will adequately prepare public sector workers for dignified retirement,” the President said.
Public service experts have long argued that Zimbabwe’s bureaucracy suffers from low productivity, absenteeism, and a lack of accountability.
A 2023 Public Service Commission report found that fewer than 40% of civil servants believed their performance was regularly evaluated.
“The problem has never been the existence of systems but the will to enforce them,” said governance analyst Rutendo Mangoma.
“If the President now personally backs performance contracting, and links it to remuneration and retention, that changes the dynamic significantly.”
The government also unveiled a National Formalisation Strategy aimed at bringing informal workers into the formal economy, promoting decent work, and strengthening labour law compliance.
“That will protect workers operating outside the formal economic system,” Mnangagwa said.
However, labour unions remain cautious. The Zimbabwe Public Service Association (ZPSA) welcomed the retirement planning programme but warned that performance metrics must be fair and transparent.
“Our members support efficiency, but we oppose a culture of fear where civil servants can be dismissed arbitrarily based on opaque targets,” said ZPSA secretary-general Cecil Mutsvangwa.
The President acknowledged the need for balance but was unyielding on the goal.
“We are strengthening the Integrated Results Based Management System,” he repeated for emphasis. “The duty lies with us all.”
As Zimbabwe races towards an upper middle-income society by 2030, the message from Maphisa was unmistakable: the era of underperforming public servants may finally be coming to an end.
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