IN the midst of the ever emerging potholes and many other challenges presently bedevilling the country, we seem to have forgotten, as a nation, that we should be a global economic powerhouse.
Anyone who has doubted Zimbabwe’s potential to be an economic powerhouse will not only have to re-assess his/her judgement but read history with particular reference to how King Munhumutapa made the country a focal point of economic development.
And Munhumutapa was not only focused on domestic development but stamping his and Zimbabwe’s footprint on global economic-political affairs.
Sounds strange?
No!
Such was the strength of his vision that had the foundation he laid during his reign not been disturbed by colonialism, we would be there among the most developed nations in the world.
That is the power of dreaming and action!
Munhumutapa never wavered on his vision and dream of making this country an economic powerhouse but it seems this generation, my generation, has gravitated drastically and disappointingly away from this vision.
President Robert Mugabe and ZANU PF, the principal targets of opponents, have carried on with Munhumutapa’s vision but we dither as a nation, fail as a people and blame them for our misfortunes.
Yet the point, as we continue to lick our wounds, is that we have all the ingredients to be there at the top but we just seem not to get it right.
The current state of our economic situation is not and can never be a reflection of the economic policies and programmes of the Government of Zimbabwe.
Rather, the decline is a reflection of the attitude of some of those who have been entrusted by the leadership to enforce policies and programmes.
The biggest challenge we have is this new class of purported businesspeople who have strong ties to Western equity funds and who have uncritically absorbed Western cultural values.
These come up with ideas that are anti-people, ideas that thrive on capitalism and ideas that alienate people from their land and resources.
Big corporates are built from internal resources as well as ideas, and expansion makes them international players in the business world.
Corporates are not built on the basis of adopting foreign ideas and values.
That is why that man panning for gold in Shamva can build his corporate from his ideas and support from leadership.
This is the reason the pre-colonial economy thrived, because while Munhumutapa did business with almost everyone in the world, the relationship remained strictly business with no other ties beyond that.
One of the critical stages of making a country a powerhouse is countering imperialist aggression.
As a country, Zimbabwe has done just that and the Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Programme must never be hijacked by those with power and influence because it was never created for them but for the common people whose ideas have so much promise but lack support.
There is that girl from Hurungwe who has the capacity to create various innovations but that dream will remain just that because someone given the mandate to unearth that gem is busy helping himself or herself to people’s money.
Many historians reluctantly agree that when traders and colonialists came to Zimbabwe, the Munhumutapa Empire had already exploited more than 4 000 ounces of gold and operated in excess of 500 copper mines across the country. 
And they processed the minerals themselves!
A lot of engineers and architects from across the world come to Zimbabwe to study the pre-colonial Great Zimbabwe architecture yet we continue to reproduce Western architecture.
According to a report on www.historyofzimbabwe.com, Zimbabwe was once a global economic powerhouse that had structures which supported its economic policies.
The report says:
“Great Zimbabwe was an imposing pre-colonial city that prospered from about 1290 to 1450 on the strength of an influential and structured civilisation.
It thrived on the underpinning of good agricultural circumstances, cattle-keeping, and perhaps most notably, the creation of both a regional and long distance trading system.
Trade was conducted with China, India, the Middle-East, as well as East and West Africa.
The majority of traded merchandise from Great Zimbabwe included glass beads, brass wire, seashells, iron wire, axe heads and chisels, while local goods included ivory, iron ornaments, gold wire, beads and a variety of other items.”
We can follow the example of China.
A report published by The World Post on February 2 2015 highlights how China has emerged to become a global economic powerhouse.
Interestingly there are striking similarities between China and Zimbabwe, especially the political set-up.
“China’s political system is not monolithic, or colossal, it has worked under a seven-member Politburo Standing Committee of party congress. Political leadership is elected every five years,” reads the report in part.
“Current President Xi Jinping launched the economic development of the silk route countries, clamped down on corruption by rooting out high party members and military brass, has launched a rural development programme to close distributional and development gaps and promote social equity.
“The economic innovation in China started in the early eighties, beginning with Deng Xiaoping through Hujintao implementing innovative economic policies which lifted China’s sluggish economy by introducing private ownership, market economy and less governmental control, contributing to robust economic performance.”
Zimbabwe will become the China of Africa without doubt, but we need to have people who love their country enforcing policies, not those who sabotage President Mugabe and his Government’s ideas.
Let those with ears listen.