Financial Crime World

Challenges Facing Zimbabwe: A Report on Corruption, Poor Governance, and Human Rights

Introduction

The report highlights significant challenges facing Zimbabwe across various sectors, including corruption, poor governance, lack of judicial independence, inadequate law enforcement, and a high-risk environment for money laundering and terrorism financing.

Sectoral Challenges

Justice System

  • Corruption and political appointments have led to decreased trust in the system.
  • Judges are often influenced by the government, and whistleblowers, journalists, and activists face prosecution and detention.

Law Enforcement

  • The police force is underfunded, poorly trained, and plagued with corruption.
  • They lack appropriate transport facilities, making it difficult for them to respond to calls for assistance.
  • Security forces commit arbitrary arrests, violent assaults, abductions, torture, and other abuses against opposition politicians, dissidents, and activists.

Border Control

  • Corruption among border control personnel remains a problem.
  • The country has vulnerable points that facilitate smuggling and other illicit activities.
  • Private-public partnerships to administer and maintain border crossing infrastructure for a fee are not effective due to corruption and weak legal frameworks.

Economic Environment

  • Zimbabwe is high-risk for money laundering and terrorism financing.
  • The current money laundering framework’s effectiveness is negated by various weaknesses, particularly that the Financial Intelligence Unit does not share a common case management system with law enforcement agencies it relies on.
  • Companies are required to maintain accurate and up-to-date information and file it with the Registrar of Companies.

Civil Society and Social Protection

  • The Zimbabwean state offers very little in terms of treatment and victim support.
  • There is no evidence of a functioning and comprehensive witness protection program in the country.
  • The government views civil society actors who promote democratic governance or economic reform as supporters of regime change by opposition political parties and international actors, leading to suppression of dissent and interference in NGO operations.

Conclusion

The report concludes that Zimbabwe faces significant challenges across various sectors. Urgent reforms are necessary to address these issues and improve the overall situation in the country.