Zimbabwe: Government#

Country nameconventional long form: Republic of Zimbabwe
conventional short form: Zimbabwe
former: Southern Rhodesia, Rhodesia
etymology: takes its name from the Kingdom of Zimbabwe (13th-15th century) and its capital of Great Zimbabwe, the largest stone structure in pre-colonial southern Africa
Government typesemi-presidential republic
CapitalHarare Harare
geographic coordinates: 17 49 S, 31 02 E
time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions8 provinces and 2 cities* with provincial status; Bulawayo*, Harare*, Manicaland, Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Masvingo, Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, Midlands
Independence18 April 1980 (from the UK)
National holidayIndependence Day, 18 April (1980)
Constitutionprevious 1965 (at Rhodesian independence), 1979 (Lancaster House Agreement), 1980 (at Zimbabwean independence); latest final draft completed January 2013, approved by referendum 16 March 2013, approved by Parliament 9 May 2013; amended many times in 2013; note - significant amendments proposed in early 2015 (2016)
Legal systemmixed legal system of English common law, Roman-Dutch civil law, and customary law
International law organization participationhas not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt
Citizenshipcitizenship by birth: no
citizenship by descent only: the father must be a citizen of Zimbabwe; in the case of a child born out of wedlock, the mother must be a citizen
dual citizenship recognized: no
residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years
Suffrage18 years of age; universal
Executive branchchief of state: Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE (since 31 December 1987); Vice Presidents Emmerson Dambudzo MNANGAGWA and Phelekezela MPHOKO (both since 12 December 2014); note - Vice President Joice MUJURU (since 6 December 2004) was dismissed 9 December 2014
head of government: Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE (since 31 December 1987); note - following the 31 July 2013 presidential election, the position of prime minister was abolished
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by president, responsible to House of Assembly
elections/appointments: each presidential candidate nominated with a nomination paper signed by at least 10 registered voters (at least 1 candidate from each province) and directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (no term limits); election last held on 31 July 2013 (next to be held in 2018); co-vice presidents drawn from party leadership
election results: Robert Gabriel MUGABE reelected president; percent of vote - Robert Gabriel MUGABE (ZANU-PF) 61.1%, Morgan TSVANGIRAI (MDC-T) 34.4%, Welshman NCUBE (MDC-N) 2.7%, other 1.8%; note - the election process was considered flawed and roundly criticized by election monitors and international bodies; both the African Union and the South African Development Community endorsed the results of the election with some concerns
Legislative branchdescription: bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (80 seats; 60 members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies - 6 seats in each of the 10 provinces - by proportional representation vote, 16 indirectly elected by the regional governing councils, 2 reserved for the National Council Chiefs, and 2 reserved for members with disabilities; members serve 5-year terms) and the House of Assembly (270 seats; 210 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and 60 seats reserved for women directly elected by proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms)
elections: last held on 31 July 2013 (next to be held in 2018)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ZANU-PF 37, MDC-T 21, MDC-N 2, chiefs 18, people with disabilities 2; House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ZANU-PF 196, MDC-T 70, MDC-N 2, independent 2
Judicial branchhighest court(s): Supreme Court (consists of the chief justice and 4 judges); Constitutional Court (consists of the chief and deputy chief justices and 9 judges)
judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges appointed by the president upon recommendation of the Judicial Service Commission, an independent body consisting of the chief justice, Public Service Commission chairman, attorney general, and 2-3 members appointed by the president; judges normally serve until age 65 but can elect to serve until age 70; Constitutional Court judge appointment NA; judges serve non-renewable 15-year terms
subordinate courts: High Court; Labor Court; Administrative Court; regional magistrate courts; customary law courts; special courts
Political parties and leadersFreedom Party (Cosmas MPONDA)
Movement for Democratic Change - Ncube or MDC-N (Welshman NCUBE)
Movement for Democratic Change - Renewal or MDC-R (Sekai HOLLAND); note - has been kicked out of Parliament as of 17 May 2015
Movement for Democratic Change - Tsvangirai or MDC-T (Morgan TSVANGIRAI)
Transform Zimbabwe or TZ (Jacob NGARIVHUME)
United Parties (Abel MUZOREWA)
Zimbabwe African National Union-Ndonga or ZANU-Ndonga (Wilson KUMBULA)
Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front or ZANU-PF (Robert Gabriel MUGABE)
Zimbabwe African Peoples Union or ZAPU (Dumiso DABENGWA)
Political pressure groups and leadersCrisis in Zimbabwe Coalition
National Constitutional Assembly or NCA (Lovemore MADHUKU)
Women of Zimbabwe Arise or WOZA (Jenni WILLIAMS)
Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions or ZCTU (Japhet MOYO)
Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights or ZLHR (Irene PETRAS)
International organization participationACP, AfDB, AU, COMESA, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the USchief of mission: Ambassador Ammon MUTEMBWA (since 18 November 2014)
chancery: 1608 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009
telephone: (1) (202) 332-7100
FAX: (1) (202) 483-9326
Diplomatic representation from the USchief of mission: Ambassador Harry K. THOMAS, Jr. (since 25 February 2016)
embassy: 172 Herbert Chitepo Avenue, Harare
mailing address: P.O. Box 3340, Harare
telephone: (263) (4) 250-593 through 250-594
FAX: (263) (4) 796-488, or 722-618
Flag descriptionseven equal horizontal bands of green, yellow, red, black, red, yellow, and green with a white isosceles triangle edged in black with its base on the hoist side; a yellow Zimbabwe bird representing the long history of the country is superimposed on a red five-pointed star in the center of the triangle, which symbolizes peace; green represents agriculture, yellow mineral wealth, red the blood shed to achieve independence, and black stands for the native people
National symbol(s)Zimbabwe bird symbol, African fish eagle, flame lily; national colors: green, yellow, red, black, white
National anthemname: "Kalibusiswe Ilizwe leZimbabwe" (Northern Ndebele language) "Simudzai Mureza WeZimbabwe" (Shona) (Blessed Be the Land of Zimbabwe)
lyrics/music: Solomon MUTSWAIRO/Fred Lecture CHANGUNDEGA

note: adopted 1994