Prioritising Zimbabwean children’s future in an uncertain time for global aid

Etona Ekole

ONE of the greatest joys of my work is meeting Zimbabwean children — bright, resilient, and full of dreams.

 

There is nothing more fulfilling than seeing how a school meal, a safe classroom, or a kind health worker can transform a child’s life.

However, with every success story, I see the urgent needs that remain—a child too small for their age due to stunting, a girl missing school due to lack of menstrual health services, a baby dying due to preventable disease.

 

 

These moments are a sobering reminder that while progress has been made, it falls short of what our children truly deserve.

 

We must go further, faster, and together.

On June 16, as we commemorate the Day of the African Child under the African Union theme: “Planning and Budgeting for Children’s Rights: Progress since 2010,” we are called to act.

The global context: A shrinking pool

The global development financing landscape has shifted significantly.

 

The impact of U.S. policy shifts, including the Donald Trump-era executive orders that restricted funding to multilateral and reproductive health organisations, continue to echo across the globe.

 

Coupled with the reduction in Official Development Assistance (ODA), many low- and middle-income countries now face a constrained fiscal reality.

 

In Zimbabwe, this is compounded by economic volatility and the increasing burden of climate-induced emergencies.

 

This reality necessitates a shift in mindset—from reliance on external aid to a sustainable, domestic funding model that puts children at the centre.

 

As the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child rightly notes, “States must take progressive and no regressive measures on budgetary allocations for children.”

Zimbabwe’s progress

Zimbabwe’s commitment is evident in its policy frameworks.

 

The National Development Strategy (NDS 1) prioritises human capital development, health, education, and social protection—areas that directly impact children.

 

The National Health Strategy, the Education Sector Strategic Plan, and the National Nutrition Strategy all reflect a growing recognition of children as the heart of national development.

 

Through initiatives like the Child Budgeting Series, launched by the Government with UNICEF support, key stakeholders — from ministries to Parliament and donors — have come together to assess how economic policies translate into outcomes for children.

 

These dialogues are not only technical exercises; they are a testament to political will and a vision for the future.

 

Yet, despite this momentum, the financing gap remains large. As outlined in the SDG Financing report, Zimbabwe’s average health allocation of 10,9 percent of the national budget (2020–2024) still falls short of the 15 percent Abuja target.

 

In education, the budget hovers around 3,5 percent of GDP—below the minimum global benchmark.

 

The result is visible in child mortality, malnutrition, and preventable diseases that continue to rob our children of their right to survival and development.

Making room in the budget: A call to action

A national budget is not simply a financial document; it is a reflection of values and priorities.

 

As a country with one of the youngest populations in Africa — more than 40 percent of Zimbabweans are under 15—our budgets must boldly reflect this demographic imperative.

 

The future cannot be postponed.

 

This means increasing the share of the national budget allocated to social sectors and protecting these funds from erosion due to inflation, corruption, or competing priorities.

 

It also means taking deliberate steps to integrate child rights impact assessments into all fiscal policies — ensuring that tax laws, levies, and trade agreements do not inadvertently harm children or exclude vulnerable populations.

 

Localising the solution

We commend the success of home-grown innovations like Zimbabwe’s AIDS Levy — a three percent tax on individual income and corporate profits dedicated to the national HIV response.

 

This pioneering financing mechanism has, not only ensured a steady, domestically sourced stream of funding for antiretroviral treatment and prevention programmes, but has also fostered self-reliance and reduced dependence on external aid.

Another powerful example of what smart, forward-thinking investment looks like is the Child Nutrition Fund (CNF) — a UNICEF-led, globally coordinated mechanism that supports countries in scaling up evidence-based nutrition programmes.

By committing to invest in nutrition supplies, the Zimbabwean Government guarantees to double its investment, maximising reach and accelerating impact for children.

 

Investing through the CNF is a bold and commendable step toward sustainable domestic financing.

 

By leveraging matching contributions, Zimbabwe is not only addressing stunting and wasting but also ensuring that interventions like ready-to-use therapeutic foods (RUTF), vitamin A supplements, and maternal nutrition support reach the most vulnerable children and women.

What we owe the children

Even modest investments in childhood yield powerful returns—for families, communities, and the economy.

 

Adults who were malnourished as children earn at least 20 percent less, while tackling stunting and malnutrition can raise GDP by two to three percent annually.

 

Education delays early marriage, reduces family size, and improves child survival — a child born to a literate mother is 50 percent more likely to survive past age five.

In Zimbabwe, nearly one-third of children are developmentally off-track, and 23 percent are stunted, often with lifelong consequences.

 

The cost of inaction is steep: violence and poor care in childhood can cost up to eight percent of global GDP.

 

Investing in children is not just the right thing to do — it is among the smartest economic decisions a country can make.

A shared promise

 

Let us make the 2025 commemoration a turning point.

 

Let us enshrine child-sensitive planning and budgeting into the DNA of our national systems.

 

Let us move from words to budgets, and from budgets to impact.

 

Because when we plan and budget for children, we plan and budget for Zimbabwe’s future.

 

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