A SLUGGISH spending pattern by the Industry and Commerce ministry has raised serious concern about the trajectory of the country’s industrialisation agenda, with the ministry utilising only 27% of its budget in the first half of the year.
According to a report by the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Industry and Commerce, which reviewed the ministry’s budget performance for the first and second quarters of 2025, expenditure across all critical programmes lagged significantly behind projections.
The low absorption rate threatens to derail key initiatives and can lead to rushed, low-quality spending later in the fiscal year.
The report highlighted a stark disparity in spending across different departments.
Programme 2, responsible for spearheading industrialisation, utilised a mere 7% of its annual allocation.
Similarly, programme 1 (policy and administration) had only spent 24% of its budget by the end of June.
In contrast, programme 3 (consumer protection and quality assurance) had exhausted its entire annual budget by the second quarter.
The committee warned that the severe under-spending on industrialisation poses a direct risk to the Zimbabwe Industrial Growth and Reconstruction Plan (ZIRGP).
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“The low absorption rate risked delayed implementation of programmes towards the industrialisation agenda, postponing activities and risk compressing spending into the latter half of the fiscal year, which can lead to rushed implementation and reduced quality,” the report read.
Ministry officials attributed the failure to fully implement the ZIRGP to external pressures, including stiff competition from imported and smuggled goods.
The report also noted that only six value chains were optimised due to “limited stakeholder buy-in”, which has hampered information flow and decision-making.
Consequently, a crucial Cabinet memorandum on the state of industry and ZIRGP implementation remains unsubmitted.
The committee also flagged significant financial control weaknesses.
A loss of US$10 671 was recorded after an officer failed to bank funds, exposing gaps in revenue management.
The ministry assured the committee that systems have been enhanced to mitigate such risks.
Lawmakers expressed alarm over a growing number of unresolved items in the ministry’s financial records, including unclaimed deposits and uncleared expenditure.
This trend, the committee warned, raises questions about the ministry’s ability to manage its funds effectively, contravening public finance management regulations.
Compounding these issues is a severe staffing crisis.
With over 50% of its 742 approved posts vacant — amounting to 409 unfilled positions — the ministry is operating with skeleton staff.
While the ministry relies on secondees and students on attachment, the committee observed that the high vacancy rate leads to staff overload and weakens service delivery.
The ministry cited delays in approving a job evaluation, which was only finalised in August 2025, as the reason for the prolonged shortage.
In response to the findings, the committee urged the ministry to strengthen quarterly expenditure planning to ensure balanced fund utilisation and timely project implementation.
It should also enhance stakeholder engagement, tighten border enforcement against smuggling and submit the delayed Cabinet memorandum by September 30, 2026.
The committee called for an immediate review of internal controls and staff training on revenue management, with corrective measures expected to be in place by June.
