By Vince Musewe

Developmental state is a term coined by Chalmers Johnson that is used to describe states that follow a particular pattern of economic planning and management.

It was originally used to describe post-1945 Japan, its rapid modernization and growth. A simple definition would be: “A developmental state is a state where the government is intimately involved in macro and microeconomic planning in order to grow the economy”, with the addition “while trying to deploy its resources in the development of lives. better for people “.

What are the characteristics of a developmental state?

The UN lists the characteristics of developmental states as follows:

• A government with the political will and the legitimate mandate to perform the required functions;
• A competent and neutral bureaucracy that ensures the implementation. It requires a strong education system and an efficient set of public sector organizations with little corruption;
• An institutionalized process where bureaucrats and government engage with other stakeholders; and
• An established development framework and comprehensive governance system to ensure program implementation, for example, a central function responsible for overall coordination.

China, Singapore, India, Thailand, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia, South Korea, the Philippines, and Indonesia are all classified as developmental states.

Accordingly, it is agreed that the developmental state does not only refer to collective economic and human development, but also describes the essential role of the state in harnessing national resources and guiding incentives through a process. separate policy development. The role of the State is to support the private sector in the national industrial transformation. The state is a catalytic agency and stakeholders react to the incentives and disincentives put in place by the state.

Obviously, this means that the government must lead the development agenda by creating institutions that effectively implement projects in an inclusive manner.

In my opinion, NDS1 is an appropriate set of policies for the emergence of a developmental state in Zimbabwe. The question to be asked is: do we have the right institutional framework to create a developmental state?

In my opinion, the whole idea of ​​SOEs is for the state to play its meaningful role in the economy, especially on development issues.

Zimbabwe has 107 state and parastatal (SEP) enterprises which contribute only 12% to the GDP, up from a peak of 40% in the 1990s. Seps can be classified as strategic public enterprises, commercial or industrial public enterprises. non-strategic viable or potentially viable, non-viable public enterprises without a strategic or social function and public enterprises with a social or development role.

The difference between a “parastatal” and a “state enterprise” lies in the fact that a parastatal enterprise is created by an act of Parliament to exercise a socio-economic mandate for the benefit of the public, whereas a parastatal enterprise is created by an act of Parliament to exercise a socio-economic mandate for the benefit of the public. The state is an entity in which the government has an equity stake and is registered in accordance with the Company Law and should operate as a private enterprise.

Unfortunately, mismanagement, bad corporate governance, corruption, patronage, cronyism, abuse of public resources, increased losses which require continued support from the Treasury and unpaid taxes, have been the hallmarks. communities of Seps in Zimbabwe and this resulted in their inability to deliver planned services, necessitating their restructuring or reform.

Seps are a universal phenomenon, they are not unique to Zimbabwe. They are among the largest companies in developed economies. Seps in developed economies emerged in the 1930s, especially after World War II. It was then that governments felt the need to intervene in economies in order to facilitate economic development, create jobs and address capital shortages where the private sector was not or unwilling to participate. In some cases, and particularly in developing countries, the motive of new postcolonial governments has been to consolidate and centralize political and / or economic power under state authority by owning and controlling Seps in sectors considered strategic and essential for economic control.

Seps are considered “essential tools for control, economic planning and development”. They are a means of industrial power and influence, of economic self-sufficiency, of policy implementation, of safeguarding public interests, and of maintaining and strengthening the national interest.

Unlocking the potential of Seps can indeed accelerate the development agenda. However, reform or restructuring of Seps is essential for them to be fit for purpose. The “privatization” of Seps is another matter. Some argue that the privatization of Seps negates the role of a developmental state which should be at the center of economic development.

There is no doubt that the state will always have an important role to play in ensuring inclusive economic development that alleviates poverty, creates jobs, facilitates access to affordable basic needs for many and removes barriers to well- be economical of citizens. It is questionable whether the privatization of Seps can contribute to these objectives, given the experiences to date.

These Seps with a development mandate certainly need to be strengthened to deliver. The debate is therefore not the “what” but the “how”. Development integrity must begin with political leadership which can then build the institutional architecture necessary to implement impactful and inclusive development policies.

NDS1 is a good place to start as it is a comprehensive document on what needs to be done in each area. The role of the state is clearly to animate and facilitate inclusive development. Monitoring and evaluating progress will be a determining factor in the final results. Therefore, I postulate that Zimbabwe will need a fundamental and radical transformation where we will rebuild new inclusive, effective and accountable institutions that are fit for purpose.

Only then can we create a new growth trajectory with the state playing a key role in a developmental state.

• Vince Musewe is a freelance economist, you can contact him at [email protected]