Zimbabweans will finally breathe a sigh of relief following the announcement by the President of the United States of America (USA) Joe Biden on Monday, 04 March 2024, to revoke the sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe 21 years ago.
The sanctions by the US hurt the economy of Zimbabwe, preventing the country from getting loans from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank and many other; dropping the country’s GDP significantly with sky rocketing inflation. The economy of Zimbabwe was somewhat brought to a screeching halt.
Biden said though he is still concerned about the continued violence in Zimbabwe, the abuse of human rights in particularly that of political opponents, public corruption and the misuse of public authority; he determined that the declaration of a national emergency in Executive Order 13288 is no longer needed.
“Moreover, the United States Government will continue to use existing sanctions authorities to hold accountable persons involved in corruption and serious human rights abuse in Zimbabwe,” said President Joe Biden.
“The declaration of a national emergency in Executive Order 13288 with respect to the actions and policies of certain members of the Government of Zimbabwe and other persons to undermine Zimbabwe’s democratic processes or institutions, as relied upon for additional steps taken in Executive Order 13391 and as expanded by Executive Order 13469, should no longer be in effect,” continued the President.
The sanctions will be removed from the country and directly imposed on individuals and entities involved in the violation of human rights and public corruption.
“Therefore, I have determined that it is necessary to terminate the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13288, and revoke that order, Executive Order 13391, and Executive Order 13469,” he concluded.