The Zimbabwean government is facing severe financial constraints, resulting in the failure to disburse the local currency component of November salaries and bonuses for thousands of teachers.
The Zimbabwe Teachers’ Association (ZIMTA) has raised concerns over the government’s breach of contractual obligations, criticizing the lack of transparency surrounding the omission.
According to ZIMTA president Akuneni Maphosa, the exclusion of the Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG) component from teachers’ salaries constitutes a breach of the terms of employment and erodes trust between employees and the employer.
The union has demanded immediate action, including the disbursement of the full ZiG component of November 2024 salaries and bonuses.
The situation has left many teachers unable to meet their financial obligations, particularly during the year-end period. The ZIMTA has threatened to escalate the matter, including possible legal action or collective demonstrations, if the issue is not resolved within five days.
“The absence of this payment has left many teachers unable to meet their financial obligations, particularly at a time when economic pressures are heightened.
“As dedicated teachers and civil servants, we expect and deserve timely and full payment of all components of our remuneration. We trust the employer will address this complaint promptly to restore confidence,” Maphosa said.
The government’s financial woes have been exacerbated by a sharp depreciation of the local currency, which has lost 46% of its value since its introduction in April.
The Treasury has since directed ministries to prioritise spending for the remainder of 2024, focusing on wages and social services while cutting travel-related costs.
The move comes amid a tight fiscal space caused by the sharp depreciation of the local currency, the Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG).
To address the financial constraints, the Treasury promised to implement expenditure containment measures, including prioritising payment of outstanding unfunded payment runs and deferring local workshops.
Additionally, Treasury concurrence for foreign travels will only be granted where funding is provided by agencies other than government, local authorities, and State-owned enterprises.
“As you may be aware, the local currency unit (ZiG) recently depreciated by 43% against the US dollar resulting in a substantial mismatch between revenue inflows, collected in some cases, with a one-month lag and local currency expenditures that immediately adjusted to the new exchange rate, in the process severely constraining fiscal space for the last quarter of 2024,” Finance Ministry Secretary George Guvamatanga said in a circular dated November 13, 2024.
“The imbalance was further exacerbated by a backdated salary review award in October 2024 to the civil service.
“Given the consequent limited fiscal space and the need to mobilise additional resources to fund critical inescapable expenditures that include the 2024 bonus award, food deficit mitigation support, 2024/25 agriculture input support and utilities among other critical requirements MDAs (ministries, departments and agencies) are, therefore, requested to prioritise their expenditure commitments during this period.”
