Innocent Sibonginkosi Ncube
| Zim GBC News<\/p>\n\n\n\n
HARARE \u2013 For Zimbabweans living abroad, the dream of building a home back home is fast becoming a nightmare of price shock. Cement that costs US$6 elsewhere in the SADC region is selling for up to US$13 in Zimbabwe. And while diasporans cry foul, many back home simply shrug:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not normal, but what can they do?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A heated debate has erupted on social media after one diasporan asked a simple but painful question: Why is building material in Zimbabwe so expensive to us diasporians, yet those in Zimbabwe feel it\u2019s normal?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The answers poured in \u2014 raw, unfiltered, and revealing a deep economic fracture between those earning foreign currency abroad and those trapped inside an economy where price distortion has become routine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey have that market and are not comparing,\u201d responded one user. Another added bluntly:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not normal but what can they do?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One frustrated builder shared his recent ordeal: \u201cI had a building project last year November to December and was on the ground. I almost stopped but saw no reason. Cement was highly expensive only to be a little bit cheaper when I was on the verge of completion \u2014 imagine.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Another commentator cut to the heart of the matter:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMudhara, everything in Zim is expensive. Even tissue paper is expensive. Data in Zim? The dollar bundle lasts one day. Is Zimbabwe still a country?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When one diasporan suggested that perhaps Zimbabweans\u2019 pockets are \u201cway deeper\u201d than South Africans\u2019, the response was swift and sardonic:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cZim unoita yekunzwa iwe kkk\u201d \u2014 loosely translated as \u201cZimbabwe will make you feel it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNdikoZimbabwe yacho \u2014 muZim hamuna business but humbavha,\u201d said one. (\u201cThat\u2019s Zimbabwe \u2014 there\u2019s no business, only theft.\u201d)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cKutengesa here? Koitwa muZim kutorerana mari,\u201d another added. (\u201cSelling? What\u2019s done in Zim is taking each other\u2019s money.\u201d)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The conversation exposed a grim acceptance: \u201cNdikabirwa iwewe ndondobirwawo neumwe \u2014 zvichitoinda and it\u2019s normal.\u201d (\u201cIf I get robbed, I\u2019ll also rob someone else \u2014 it goes on and it\u2019s normal.\u201d)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
SADC COMPARISON: WHY ZIMBABWE STANDS ALONE<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One diasporan demanded a comparative structure:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat can be the contributing factors to such abnormal prices? In SADC, cement prices are averaging US$6, but in Zimbabwe it\u2019s around US$13. Are they paying high labour fees or abnormal operating costs? I can\u2019t understand.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Economists point to a toxic mix of factors:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00b7 Parallel market exchange rates distorting import costs
\u00b7 High transportation and logistics costs due to poor roads and fuel prices
\u00b7 Cartel-like behaviour among suppliers in a low-competition environment
\u00b7 Tax and duty structures that inflate landed costs of basic materials
\u00b7 Retailers pricing for dollar-earning customers (including diasporans and miners), leaving locals trapped<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOn the other side, I\u2019m feeling like their pockets are way deeper than us here in South Africa,\u201d the diasporan mused.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019re going to be lagging behind whilst our fellow countrymen are making a killing there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He added a sobering observation:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt must start to dawn on us in the diaspora that when statistics of SA tourism reflect that Zim tops the list on tourism here in Mzansi, it means a lot to Zimbabwe\u2019s pockets getting deeper.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For now, the consensus among those who responded is bleak but practical: change the government, and the conversation remains the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cUnoti chero tikachinja gvnt, humbavha ne corruption hunopera here?\u201d one asked. (\u201cDo you think even if we change government, theft and corruption will end?\u201d)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
No one has an answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Zim GBC News | Global News From An African Perspective\u00a92026<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Innocent Sibonginkosi Ncube| Zim GBC News HARARE \u2013 For Zimbabweans living abroad, the dream of building a home back home is fast becoming a nightmare of price shock. Cement that… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12998,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12997","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12997","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=12997"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12997\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12999,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12997\/revisions\/12999"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/12998"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=12997"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=12997"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=12997"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}