Private investment, government policy, and foreign capital in Zimbabwe

Policy measures to encourage recovery of private investment in Zimbabwe should focus not on measures to raise current profits but on measures to relieve supply side constraints, to reduce perceived risk, to clearly define the rules of the game for foreign investors, and to create a more favorable environment for investment decision making. Together these measures would constitute a radical shift in the business environment - one that need not lead to an unwarranted rise in either the foreign share of profits or the share of foreign capital in the economy. Dailami and Walton conclude that no simple policy shift will initiate and sustain the recovery of private investment in Zimbabwe. The reasons for weak private investment are complex. Adjustments in conventional areas are unlikely to work when the problem also lies in the overall environment for investment decision making and intangible perceptions of future risk.