HARARE – Zimbabwe’s government has moved to tighten its ease-of-doing-business reforms after Cabinet approved a fresh round of measures targeting duplicated licences, overlapping permits and high charges in the financial services sector, in what officials say is a direct response to concerns over the cost of accessing banking services and doing business.
By Advent Shoko
Under the latest Post Cabinet Briefing, authorities approved the streamlining of duplicated and overlapping regulatory licences and permits, the removal of unnecessary levies and fees, and the reduction of unjustifiably high charges within the financial services space.
Among the headline measures are the removal of monthly account maintenance fees for accounts holding less than US$100, the scrapping of fees on transactions below US$5, the removal of cash deposit charges for both United States dollar and ZiG transactions, and the abolition of account opening charges.
In another significant move likely to resonate with ordinary Zimbabweans and businesses alike, Cabinet also approved a cap of 2 percent on cash withdrawal fees for both US dollar and ZiG withdrawals.
The latest intervention forms part of a broader reform drive first announced in February, with government steadily rolling out sector-by-sector reviews of levies, licences and statutory fees that officials argue have long stifled economic activity and discouraged formal participation in the economy.
For months, authorities have been presenting what many in business circles have described as an ambitious cocktail of reforms aimed at lowering the cost of doing business and improving Zimbabwe’s competitiveness. Similar reviews have already been approved across transport, tourism, agriculture, retail and construction.
However, despite the strong policy messaging from government, concerns over implementation delays continue to dominate public discourse.
Some members of the public have openly questioned whether the announced changes are being enforced at bank level.
“Swiping at POS is still expensive and this does not encourage use of digital currency, hence cash is still in demand due to costs.”
Another concerned citizen asked:
“When does this come into effect? You find some banks still charge 3%.”
Others went further, questioning the authority behind the pricing controls.
“How come fees are just reducing here but never on the ground?
Do you have the authority to cap banking prices as ZANU? Is it not within RBZ jurisdiction?”
These concerns reflect a widening gap between policy pronouncements and the lived experiences of consumers, many of whom say charges at the point of service remain stubbornly high.
From a governance perspective, the question of regulatory authority is central.
While Cabinet can approve policy direction and instruct ministries to align sector regulations, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) remains the principal regulator of the banking and financial services sector. This means the practical enforcement of any fee caps or banking charge reforms would ordinarily require either RBZ directives, statutory instruments, or binding circulars to banks and financial institutions.
Without such instruments being gazetted or formally communicated to financial institutions, implementation may continue to lag despite Cabinet approval.
That distinction may explain why some customers are still encountering charges above the newly announced limits.
For businesses and consumers, the real test now lies not in the announcement itself, but in whether banks swiftly adjust their fee structures to reflect the new framework.
The reforms are politically significant as government seeks to demonstrate progress on its long-running ease-of-doing-business agenda, but public patience appears to be thinning as the pace of change on the ground struggles to match the speed of official announcements.
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