Zimbabwe is home to thousands of NGOs and CSOs, many of which rely heavily on funding from the US. These organisations operate across various sectors, including humanitarian aid, service delivery, and political governance.
According to the 2019 Labour Force and Child Labour Survey by the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency, the NGO sector employs 17,643 people, accounting for 1.2% of the country’s formal workforce. However, some estimates suggest the sector could be the second-largest employer in Zimbabwe after the government.
Workers Left in the Dark
Employees who spoke to NewsDay on condition of anonymity expressed their anxiety over the sudden freeze. “We are in a difficult position. We don’t know what will happen after the 90 days,” one worker said.
Another added, “I also do not know where I will get money for rentals since our salaries were also frozen.”
Many workers have been instructed to surrender vehicles and gadgets belonging to their organisations, further compounding their distress. The freeze has not only affected employees but also the communities they serve, particularly in the health sector.
Nurses and Health Workers Hit Hard
Zimbabwe Nurses Association secretary-general Enock Dongo revealed that nurses working under the US President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (PEPFAR) programme have been told not to report for duty. “We have members who have been working at local clinics who have been told not to report to duty today (yesterday). Those people are under emotional stress, and the patients who were waiting for them are affected,” he said.
Dongo criticised the abrupt nature of the decision, stating, “What the Trump administration has done is very disrespectful. You cannot just wake up and tell people not to come to work without notice. Even if the Zimbabwean government wants to chip in, it needs to prepare first. Africa should wake up and not rely on Western funds.”
A Wake-Up Call for Zimbabwe
The freeze has sparked a broader conversation about Zimbabwe’s reliance on foreign aid. Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition (CiZC) director Blessing Vava urged the country to find sustainable solutions to its challenges. “I think it is an opportunity for us to go back to the basics and build organic movements, where voluntarism and sacrifice are at the centre,” he said.
Vava emphasised the need for self-reliance, adding, “Trump is doing what he is doing for his country and the American people. We are Zimbabweans and can never be American, so let’s focus on fixing our problems instead.”
Health Sector at Risk
Health experts have warned of the catastrophic consequences of over-reliance on donor funding. Community Working Group on Health executive director Itai Rusike said, “It is risky and unsustainable for a country to depend substantially on external partners as donors can withdraw financial support anytime should their interests shift for some reason or other.”
Rusike added that the freeze could disrupt critical services, leaving patients and communities vulnerable. “It is very sad that when a country is highly dependent on external aid, health priority in government spending tends to fall in line with increased aid. Development assistance for health has crowded out government resources and created donor dependence.”
A Call for Domestic Resource Mobilisation
Health expert Martha Tholanah described the freeze as a wake-up call for Zimbabwe. “Having such panic means our reliance on foreign funding is too heavy. We need more domestic resources for health from the national Treasury,” she said.
Tholanah stressed the need for a shift in priorities, stating, “Partners should complement the government, not the other way round. I hope we get our support for treatment sorted such that we never have to be in such distress when a foreign partner decides to withdraw their support.”
HIV Treatment at Risk
Approximately 1.2 million people in Zimbabwe are on HIV treatment, with around 90% of HIV-positive pregnant women receiving ART. The freeze threatens to disrupt these programmes, putting children at risk of contracting HIV if mothers stop taking their medication. The broader implications for the health sector are dire, given its already fragile state.
Government Steps In
Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube has indicated that the government will step in to fill the funding gap through taxation. However, questions remain about the feasibility of this plan and whether it can be implemented swiftly enough to mitigate the impact of the freeze.
By the end of 2023, the US had invested over US$300 million in active programmes in Zimbabwe, according to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) foreign aid portal. The sudden withdrawal of this funding has left a significant void, highlighting the urgent need for sustainable solutions.