 Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Zimbabwe conventional short form:Zimbabwe former:Southern Rhodesia, Rhodesia
Government type:
parliamentary democracy
Capital:
name:Hararegeographic coordinates:17 49 S, 31 02 E time difference:UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
8 provinces and 2 cities* with provincial status; Bulawayo*, Harare*, Manicaland, Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Masvingo, Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, Midlands
Independence:
18 April 1980 (from the UK)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 18 April (1980)
Constitution:
previous 1979; latest approved by referendum 16 March 2013, approved by Parliament 9 May 2013 (2013)
Legal system:
mixed legal system of English common law, Roman-Dutch civil law, and customary law
International law organization participation:
has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE (since 31 December 1987); Vice President Joice MUJURU (since 6 December 2004)head of government:Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE (since 31 December 1987) note - according to the new constitution, following the 31 July 2013 presidential elections the position of Prime Minister was abolished cabinet:Cabinet appointed by the president; responsible to the House of Assembly elections:presidential candidates nominated with a nomination paper signed by at least 10 registered voters (at least one from each province) and elected by popular vote for a five-year term (no term limits); elections last held on 31 July 2013 (next to be held in 2018); co-vice presidents drawn from party leadership election results:Robert Gabriel MUGABE reelected president; percent of vote - Robert Gabriel MUGABE 61.1%, Morgan TSVANGIRAI 34.4%, Welshman NCUBE 2.7% other 1.8%; note - the election process was considered flawed and roundly criticised by election monitors and international bodies; both the AU and the SADC endoresed the results of the election with some concerns
Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament consists of a Senate (80 seats - 60 members elected by popular vote for a five-year term, 18 traditional chiefs elected by the Council of Chiefs and 2 seats reserved for people with disabilities) and a House of Assembly (270 seats - members elected by popular vote for five-year terms and 60 seats reserved for women who are identified by their parties and nominated by proportional representation)elections:last held on 31 July 2013 (next to be held in 2018) election results:Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ZANU-PF 37 MD-T 21, MDC-N 2, chiefs 18, people with disabilities 2; House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ZANU-PF 197, MDC-T 70, MDC-N 2, independent 1
Judicial branch:
highest court(s):Supreme Court (consists of the chief justice and 4 judges)judge selection and term of office:Supreme Court judges appointed by the president upon recommendation of the Judicial Service Commission, an independent body consisting of the chief justice, Public Service Commission chairman, attorney general, and 2-3 members appointed by the president; judges normally serve until age 65, but can elect to serve until age 70 subordinate courts:High Court, regional magistrate courts, and special courts
| | Political parties and leaders:
African National Party or ANP [Egypt DZINEMUNHENZVA]Movement for Democratic Change - Tsvangirai or MDC-T [Morgan TSVANGIRAI] Movement for Democratic Change - Ncube or MDC-N [Welshman NCUBE] Peace Action is Freedom for All or PAFA United Parties [Abel MUZOREWA] United People's Party or UPP [Daniel SHUMBA] Zimbabwe African National Union-Ndonga or ZANU-Ndonga [Wilson KUMBULA] Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front or ZANU-PF [Robert Gabriel MUGABE] Zimbabwe African Peoples Union or ZAPU [Dumiso DABENGWA] Zimbabwe Youth in Alliance or ZIYA
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition
International organization participation:
ACP, AfDB, AU, COMESA, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNISFA, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission:Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Richard CHIBUWE (since April 2014)chancery:1608 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone:[1] (202) 332-7100 FAX:[1] (202) 483-9326
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission:Ambassador David Bruce WHARTON (since 15 November 2012)embassy:172 Herbert Chitepo Avenue, Harare mailing address:P. O. Box 3340, Harare telephone:[263] (4) 250-593 through 250-594 FAX:[263] (4) 796-488, or 722-618
Flag description:
seven equal horizontal bands of green, yellow, red, black, red, yellow, and green with a white isosceles triangle edged in black with its base on the hoist side; a yellow Zimbabwe bird representing the long history of the country is superimposed on a red five-pointed star in the center of the triangle, which symbolizes peace; green represents agriculture, yellow mineral wealth, red the blood shed to achieve independence, and black stands for the native people
National symbol(s):
Zimbabwe bird symbol, African fish eagle, flame lily
National anthem:
name:'Kalibusiswe Ilizwe leZimbabwe' [Northern Ndebele language] 'Simudzai Mureza WeZimbabwe' [Shona] (Blessed Be the Land of Zimbabwe)lyrics/music:Solomon MUTSWAIRO/Fred Lecture CHANGUNDEGA note:adopted 1994 |