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Zimbabwe stands at a critical economic and environmental crossroads. Our development model remains largely extractive, wasteful and short-term, built on a linear economic system that takes resources from the earth, turns them into products, and ultimately discards them as waste. This "take-make-waste" approach may have powered industrial growth in the past, but today it is increasingly incompatible with Zimbabwe's realities of climate stress, resource depletion, unemployment, urban decay and fiscal constraint.
By Brighton Musonza
The time has come for Zimbabwe to seriously embrace a circular economy -- a system in which materials never become waste, products remain in use for as long as possible, and nature is actively regenerated rather than destroyed.
A circular economy is fundamentally different from the linear model. Instead of assuming that resources are infinite and waste is inevitable, it is designed around keeping materials and value in circulation. Products are maintained, reused, repaired, refurbished, remanufactured, recycled or composted. Waste and pollution are eliminated at the design stage, not managed at the end.
At its core, the circular economy is guided by three principles:
This system is underpinned by a transition to renewable energy and sustainable materials, making it more resilient, inclusive and future-proof. It decouples economic growth from the consumption of finite resources -- a crucial consideration for countries like Zimbabwe, whose mineral wealth and natural capital have too often been exploited without long-term national benefit.
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Zimbabwe's current economic structure mirrors the colonial extractive model: raw materials are dug out, exported or consumed inefficiently, and environmental damage is externalised to communities. From gold and lithium mining to timber, agriculture and urban consumption, the pattern is the same -- value leaks out, waste accumulates, and ecosystems degrade.
Urban centres such as Harare, Bulawayo and Mutare are overwhelmed by unmanaged waste, while informal settlements lack recycling systems and basic sanitation. Illegal dumpsites, plastic pollution and water contamination have become public health risks. Meanwhile, climate shocks -- droughts, floods and heatwaves -- continue to undermine agriculture, food security and rural livelihoods.
The linear model also destroys jobs. Once resources are extracted and exported, there is little downstream industrial activity. Zimbabwe exports raw minerals and imports finished goods at higher prices, deepening trade deficits and currency pressures. Waste is treated as a cost, not an opportunity.
For Zimbabwe, the circular economy is not just an environmental agenda -- it is a development strategy.
A circular system creates more jobs per unit of resource than a linear one. Repair, recycling, remanufacturing, agro-processing, renewable energy, waste collection and materials recovery are labour-intensive activities that can absorb youth and informal workers. Small and medium enterprises can thrive in reuse, refurbishment and local value chains.
For example:
This approach builds domestic industrial capacity, reduces import dependence, and keeps value circulating within the local economy.
Zimbabwe is highly vulnerable to climate change, yet contributes very little to global emissions. The circular economy offers a way to cut greenhouse gas emissions while strengthening resilience. By using fewer virgin materials, improving energy efficiency and switching to renewables, emissions decline without sacrificing growth.
At the same time, regenerating soils, forests and water systems supports agriculture, tourism and biodiversity. Healthy ecosystems are not luxuries -- they are productive assets. A circular economy recognises nature as capital that must be restored, not exhausted.
The transition also speaks to social justice and governance reform. Waste pickers, informal traders and community recyclers already operate circular activities at the margins of the economy. Formalising and supporting these actors can improve incomes, dignity and public health.
Government policy has a central role to play: redesigning procurement rules, incentivising recycling industries, enforcing environmental standards, investing in renewable energy and integrating circular principles into education and urban planning. Municipalities must shift from waste collection to resource management.
Critically, Zimbabwe must move away from short-term extractive thinking and adopt systems thinking -- transforming how resources are managed, how products are made and used, and what happens to materials after use.
The circular economy offers Zimbabwe the tools to tackle climate change, biodiversity loss, unemployment and economic fragility at the same time. It allows the country to grow prosperity while cutting waste and pollution, to industrialise without destroying its natural heritage, and to build resilience in an uncertain global economy.
Continuing with the linear "take-make-waste" model will only deepen environmental degradation, inequality and dependency. Transitioning to a circular economy, by contrast, is an opportunity to reimagine development itself -- one that works for business, people and the planet.
For Zimbabwe, the question is no longer whether we can afford to make this transition, but whether we can afford not to.