Zimbabwe gov't risks millions on undelivered asset...

Zimbabwe gov't risks millions on undelivered assets, AG warns

Philemon Jambaya

Zim Now Editor

Zimbabwean government is facing a potential financial haemorrhage, with millions of dollars in taxpayer money at risk due to a startling revelation from the latest Auditor-General’s report. Ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) are yet to receive a significant cache of vehicles, equipment, and other vital assets that were paid for as far back as 2021, painting a grim picture of lax contract monitoring and procurement inefficiencies.

Acting Auditor-General Rheah Kujinga, in her report tabled in Parliament last week, minced no words in flagging the systemic failures. She highlighted that contract monitoring was woefully inadequate, leading to a situation where critical provisions meant to address non-performance by suppliers were simply not invoked. The persistent issue of non-delivery of procured goods, Kujinga noted, remains a deep-seated cause for concern across government operations.

“Some MDAs had undelivered goods dating back to 2021. I noted that contract monitoring was not effectively done, as provisions of the contract on non-performance by the supplier were not invoked,” the report stated. The scale of the problem is substantial: a staggering 40 vehicles, 17 fire trucks, 83 desktops, 75 laptops, and various office furniture items paid for between 2021 and May 30, 2025, remain undelivered. The combined value of these missing assets runs into an alarming US9,259,711,ZWG24,538,578,andZWL375,512,256. The Auditor-General warned of the "risk of excessive contract price variations if payments and deliveries are not made within the agreed contract period," implying that the government could end up paying even more for assets it hasn't received.

Beyond the financial peril, Kujinga underscored the direct impact on public services. "Service delivery was compromised as the assets were tools of trade required for the well-functioning of MDAs," she stated, emphasizing that the absence of these vital resources directly hampers the ability of government bodies to effectively serve the citizenry.

The report specifically names several ministries entangled in this procurement quagmire. The Ministry of Local Government and Public Works stands out, having ordered 17 fire trucks worth US$8,383,080 and other vehicles valued at ZWL203,285,545, none of which have been delivered. The Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development is similarly affected, awaiting a range of assets including a Toyota Hilux GD6 double cab, tablets, desks, chairs, iPhone accessories, and a tent. Even more critically for food security, the ministry contracted the construction of 56,000 tonnes of grain silos, valued at a massive US$355,684,000, which have not been delivered since 2024.

Adding another layer of complexity to the government's financial oversight, Kujinga also highlighted significant issues with the recent conversion of financial transactions from the old ZWL currency to the new Zimbabwe Gold (ZWG), which became effective on April 5, 2024. MDAs were instructed to produce financial statements for the entire financial year in ZWG, requiring the translation of all ZWL transactions.

However, the Auditor-General observed that "the circular was not uniformly applied by MDAs." This led to widespread discrepancies, with "nearly all MDAs withdrew and resubmitted financial statements during the audit; some withdrew and resubmitted more than four times," causing considerable auditing challenges.

Further compounding the problem was a five-month downtime of the Public Financial Management Systems (PFMS) between April and August 2024, coinciding with the currency changeover. During this critical period, "most MDAs operated outside the PFMS. The financial information that would have been processed outside the system was not uploaded onto the system in some cases. Such information would misstate expenditure figures,” Kujinga warned. This operational lapse created a black hole in financial tracking, making it even harder to reconcile payments and deliveries, thereby exacerbating the very issues the Auditor-General's report now exposes.