Bulawayo- Speaker of Parliament, Advocate Jacob Mudenda has demanded that the 2027 National Budget allocate sufficient resources to electrify rural schools, stock clinics with medicines and equip universities for an industrialising economy, while meeting international benchmarks for health and education funding.

Addressing the 2026 Pre-Budget Seminar at ZITF Grounds in Bulawayo yesterday, held under the theme “Accelerating Economic Transformation and Building Resilience to Climate and Global Shocks”, Advocate Mudenda said a developmental and credible budget must invest adequately in human resources.

“A developmental and credible budget has to invest adequately in human resources. That is why the 2027 Budget should allocate sufficient resources to ensure that rural schools are electrified or solarised, clinics are stocked with medicines and medical equipment, and universities are equipped to produce graduates fit for an industrialising economy,” said Advocate Mudenda.

“You must ensure that allocations to both sectors advance fulfilment of the benchmarks to which Zimbabwe has subscribed, namely, the Abuja Declaration target of 15% of public expenditure for health and the Education 2030 Framework for Action benchmark of 15% to 20% of public expenditure for education.”

He said within the education allocation, Government must provide for age-appropriate Artificial Intelligence (AI) literacy across the entire learning continuum while ensuring rural and marginalised communities are not left behind in increased internet penetration.

“Within the education allocation, adequate resources must be made available for age-appropriate Artificial Intelligence (AI) literacy across the entire learning continuum while ensuring that rural and marginalised communities are not left behind in increased internet penetration in the hinterland. Growth achieved without reducing poverty and vulnerability is, at best, partial and, at worst, exclusionary,” he said.

The Speaker, whose keynote address was attended by Minister of State for Bulawayo Metropolitan Province Judith Ncube, Senate President Mable Chinomona, Deputy Speaker Tariro Gezi, Finance Minister Prof. Mthuli Ncube, Reserve Bank Governor Dr John Mushayavanhu and Clerk of Parliament Kennedy Chokuda, said Parliament must use its constitutional power over the purse to ensure the budget is developmental and inclusive.

He said Parliament’s authority is enshrined in Section 303 of the Constitution which decrees that no public funds may be withdrawn from the Consolidated Revenue Fund except by explicit parliamentary appropriation, and urged MPs to scrutinise allocations through the prism of constitutional fidelity, developmental impact, value for money and public interest.

Adv Mudenda commended Government for recording 8.3% growth in 2025 surpassing the 6.6% projection, and for reducing ZiG annual inflation from 95.8% in 2025 to 4.3% in October 2026, with foreign currency receipts rising to US$10.7 billion between January and June 2026 from US$7.3 billion last year.

He however warned that the chasm between allocation and utilisation remains the Achilles’ heel of the budget process, citing the 2026 Mid-Year Review which showed utilisation at 42.5% at mid-year despite Treasury collecting ZiG137.8 billion against a target of ZiG124.4 billion.

He said the 2027 Budget must give full effect to Section 301(3) of the Constitution which reserves not less than 5% of national revenues for provinces and local authorities, and must mobilise infrastructure finance through Public-Private Partnerships, Diaspora Infrastructure Bonds and Prescribed Asset investments, tapping into NSSA’s US$1 billion asset base, Old Mutual’s US$1.2 billion and the Public Service Pension Fund’s US$700 million.

On beneficiation, Advocate Mudenda said Zimbabwe must learn from Indonesia’s 2020 ban on raw nickel exports, noting that Zimbabwe exported 520.9 thousand metric tonnes of lithium concentrate earning US$671.7 million in the first half of 2026 alone, without value addition.

He also urged Government to deepen investment in irrigation and operationalise the Dam-As-An-Economy concept to make every major dam including Tugwi-Mukosi an economic ecosystem for irrigation, aquaculture, tourism and renewable energy, warning that the World Meteorological Organization has projected El Niño conditions will persist into 2027.