Zimbabwe is a landlocked country and does not have any ports. For information on ports that may be used to bring goods to Zimbabwe, please see the following links:

2.1.1 South Africa Port of Durban

2.1.1 Mozambique Port of Beira

In 1999, the Government of Zimbabwe established the Supervising authority Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe (CAAZ) through the Civil Aviation Act of 1998. The CAAZ is the main provider of civil aviation services, serving as the regulator of the industry, managing the civil aviation infrastructure, including the main airports, and providing airspace management services.

The CAAZ owns and manages eleven airports in Zimbabwe. The original design capacity of the various terminals was sufficient for up to 3.8 million passengers a year. Harare is the main hub, but its operations and that of the other major airports have been affected by the poor performance of the economy. Civil aviation infrastructure in Zimbabwe is in need of rehabilitation and regular maintenance. A particular concern is air traffic control and safety, as equipment is old and in need of replacement. Closely related to traffic surveillance is the capability for aircraft communication to and from the ground.

The entire airspace of Zimbabwe has not been covered by existing facilities, and what does exist is deficient. The airspace surveillance equipment is not well maintained, and while repairs have been carried out at Harare, work on the system at Joshua Nkomo International Airport (Bulawayo) is incomplete. Shortcomings in surveillance also raise concerns about search and rescue operations. Weather installations are inadequate and broadband infrastructure is not available at most airports.

As a result of the economic problems of the past decade and sharp decline in tourism activity in Zimbabwe, international and domestic aircraft movements have declined sharply. The former declined from about 31,000 in 1999 to about 16,000 in 2009. The decline in domestic movements was even greater, owing to the decline in domestic travel by tourists and the adverse effect of the domestic economic difficulties. The large contraction in demand for air services to and from Zimbabwe has contributed to a sharp reduction in the number of international airlines that service the Zimbabwe market.

During 1997-2007 more than twenty scheduled airlines discontinued services in Zimbabwe, including major carriers such as Air France (1997), KLM (1998), Lufthansa (2000), Swiss Air (2000), and British Airways (2007). At present, 13 airlines operate services to and from Zimbabwe. These include Air Zimbabwe, which is the primary domestic carrier owned by the Government, Kenya Airways, Air Malawi, Botswana Airline, South African Airways, South African Airlink, Comair (which is a franchise partner with British Airways), Air Namibia, Emirates, Egyptian, Zambezi Airline, Ethiopian Airlines, Angola Airlines and Fly Africa (budget airline). There are 130 airports (or 196 per the CIA) in Zimbabwe, a combination of paved and unpaved runways. 

All aircrafts carrying cargo must land only at designated airports. Air freight will be cleared at the airport of first landing in Zimbabwe provided such airport is a designated customs airport. If the airport of destination is not a designated airport, the aircraft operator must take special arrangements for clearance of the freight before flying to the destination.

The dropping or spraying of objects or other substances out of or from the aircraft is prohibited. This does not apply to ballast in the form of water or fine sand, fuel tow ropes, tow banners or similar objects if dropped or discharged at places where no danger to persons or property exist. The authority may grant exemption to the introduction if no danger to persons or property exists.

In accordance with article 19 of the International Sanitary regulations adopted by the World Health Organisation, the following are designed sanitary airports:

• Harare/Harare Airport
• Bulawayo/Joshua Mquabuko Nkomo Airport

Key airport information may also be found at World Aero Data. 

Private aircraft operating into an airport in Zimbabwe and carrying seven passengers and below do not require prior permission but should submit normal ATC flight plan only. Private aircraft wishing to over fly Zimbabwean airspace are however are required to have prior permission and must submit an application to the CAAZ.

The authority establishes prohibited areas and restricted areas, if necessary, for the prevention of danger to public safety or order especially for the safety of air traffic. These areas are published in the Aeronautical Information Publication (AIP)

At minor aerodromes without ATC, inspections are often irregular, and pivots must, in addition to obtaining the latest serviceability, examine the landing area from the air before attempting to land. Generally, no facilities are provided.

For airport contact information, please see the following links:

4.1 Zimbabwe Government Contact List

4.5 Zimbabwe Airport Company Contact List

Procedures for Foreign Registered Aircraft

An operator intending to over fly Zimbabwe must apply in writing to Nigel Marumahoko at the Civil Aviation Authority on Fax number: +263(04)585100 during working hours or +263(04)575163 during weekends and holidays. Once this has been approved then further information will be issued in order to complete registration.

In Zimbabwe, the following requirements need to be applied, presented and approved before pre-positioning of foreign registered aircraft:

• Aircraft registration
•  Aircraft type and MAUW
•  Operator's full name and address
•  Point of departures, destinations, and further itineraries
•  Route, entry and exit points
•  Return phone, fax numbers and email
•  Number of passengers and intended cargo loads
•  Exact purpose of flights

Registration and Safety: Registration will take place once the application has been approved

Operator, aircraft and crew documentation: Any documentation not submitted in the application procedure will be noted and requested of the operator once the application has been completed and approved.

The Authority will inform the applicant, by return fax, of the calculated costs of the intended operations. Payment must be made by means of a bank transfer of the required amount into the authority’s FCA account. Processing is almost immediate and may take up to a week if there are any irregularities.

For information on required fees, please see the following attachment: Zimbabwe Aviation Fees 

Road transport is the dominant means of transport in Zimbabwe. Most of the traffic and trade (80% by volume) is transported by road. More than 70% of Zimbabwe regional trunk roads and primary roads were built in the 1960's and early 70's and most of them have exceeded their 20 year design life. Lack of financial resources to reconstruct or rehabilitate the aging road network and the unavailability of good quality gravel is compounding the problem.

Zimbabwean roads are managed, maintained and operated by the Zimbabwe National Road Administration (ZINARA). ZINARA is responsible for managing the Road Fund and disbursing to the following road authorities: Department of Roads in the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure Development, responsible for trunk roads; Rural District and Urban Councils, responsible for urban roads; and the District Development Fund, responsible for rural roads. The country's national highways are currently undergoing dualisation albeit at a slow pace due to funding constraints. Large requirements in support of road maintenance have necessitated the introduction of toll gate fees to complement the limited national budget resources. The introduction of toll fees has provided additional resources for the maintenance and rehabilitation of the Zimbabwean road network. Paved roads link the major urban and industrial centres, but the condition of urban roads and the unpaved rural road network has deteriorated significantly over the years for lack of maintenance.

The country has a lot of haulage trucks that are readily available for lease and use by UN, NGOs, the private sector as well as government. WFP and partners have databases for such service providers. Seasonal demands and supply variations have little effects on the transport rates. Fuel price hike has a knock on effect on the transport charges.

For contact information for the relevant government authorities, please see the following link: 4.1 Zimbabwe Government Contact List.

For more information on the Zimbabwe road network, please see the following attachment: Additional Zimbabwe Road Network Information

Distance Matrix

Travel Time Matrix

Road Security

The road security in Zimbabwe is classified as Good. 

Weighbridges and Axle Load Limits

Weighbridges can be found across the country but those that affect road transport can be found at each border crossing. Here the V.I.D. will inspect trucks and those they assess to be overweight are weight at their respective depots.

Road Class and Surface Conditions

Road Classifications

By Use there are four classes of roads:

• Regional Trunk Road Network-Provides vital links to provincial capitals and connects Zimbabwe to its neighbouring countries
• Primary Road-Provides links to urban centres and provincial centres
• Secondary Road-Provides link between service centre, growth points and primary roads
• Feeder Road-These are inter-district and provide links to rural service centres

Total road lengths in Zimbabwe come to 97,267 km. Paved roads make up 18,481 km (20.4% surfaced, 14% gravel), and unpaved roads amount to 78,786 km (65.6% earth roads). The following table shows distribution of roads by authority:

There are 88,100 km of classified roads in Zimbabwe, 17,400 km of which are paved. About 5% of the network is classified as primary roads and has some of the most trafficked arterials that link Zimbabwe with its neighbours. A portion of the Pan-Africa Highway passes through Zimbabwe. This part of the road network plays a major role in the movement of the country’s imports and exports as well as transit freight.

Some 14% of the network is classified as secondary roads that link the main economic canters within the country, enabling internal movement of people and goods. The primary and secondary roads are collectively referred to as the trunk road system; they carry over 70% of the vehicular traffic (measured in vehicle kilometres) and they are managed by the Department of Roads (DoR). A little more than 70% of the network is made up of tertiary feeder and access roads that link rural areas to the secondary road network. These are managed by the District Development Fund (DDF) and by the District Councils (DC).

The tertiary access roads, together with the unclassified tracks, typically with traffic volumes below 50 vehicles per day, provide for the intra-rural access movements. They link rural communities to social economic amenities, such as schools, health centres, and markets, and enable government services to reach rural areas. The remaining 9% of the network are urban roads managed by urban councils. The road density in Zimbabwe is about 0.23 km per square km. This is high compared with many developing countries; it is comparable to that of the high income, non-OECD countries and lower middle-income countries. Only OECD countries have a substantially higher road density than Zimbabwe.

The implication is that a relatively high proportion of the population has access to the road network of the country. Moreover, Zimbabwe has a very substantial road network relative to its gross domestic product (GDP). The replacement value of the road network asset is estimated at about $10 billion, equivalent to almost three times the current level of GDP. This ratio is high in comparison with many developing countries, and it gives some insight into the current large economic burden of maintaining the road network.

The Department of National Parks and Ministry of Lands have roads within their jurisdiction, but these are considered as private since they are not declared roads.

The Department of Roads design surfaced roads for a 20-year Design Life; however, many roads have outlived their design life. The Department of Roads classifies its roads by surface type, by estimated traffic during its design life and use. By surface type the following classes apply:

The other type of classification is by Estimated Traffic based on Equivalent Standard Axles of  10 tons per axle during the 20-year design life of the road:

Following is a table showing distribution by surface type and respective Province (km):

The Regional Trunk Road Network (RTRN) has a total of 3,174.9 km, of which 2,573.9 km (81%) have outlived the 20 year design life but have maintained a good condition due to spot rehabilitation where necessary. The following table shows trunk road network:  

NB: * implies roads linking provincial capitals.

Bridges

Bridges built within the primary road network are full operational throughout the year. One bridge on the route between Chiredzi and Tanganda Holt crossing the Save River is low enough for water to flood the road in an event of a flash flood. Secondary roads regularly succumb to flooding in the wet months. The Victoria Falls, Birchenough, Otto Beit (Chirundu) and Beit (Beitbridge) bridges have stood the test of time but are closed when there is a need for maintenance. Security is very tight on all bridges by both the host country i.e. Zimbabwe and the neighbouring nations.

Transport Corridors

Transport corridors correspond to the international corridors as described below.

• Beitbridge –Harare
• Beitbridge –Bulawayo
• Beitbridge – Mutare
• Mutare –Harare
• Plumtree –Bulawayo
• Plumtree –Harare
• Chirundu –Harare
• Harare – Nyamapanda

The rail system was built in the early 1900’s (part of it represents a segment of the Cape-Cairo railway) and has not been revamped since. As a result of 100 years of use, a number of sections are deteriorating with the track cracking and the foundations sagging. Lack of maintenance has led to faulty points resulting in numerous derailments.  The National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) employed 17,000 staff in the late 1980’s, but today only 4-6000 employees are on hand. Vandalism has paralyzed the communications systems and only shunting is possible with the electric locomotives in urban areas – two-way radios are used to facilitate train movements between towns. The geographical spread of the network makes it almost impossible to adequately protect and guard. Four million running tons is possible with the current capacity but this is yet to be proven.

The NRZ is the parastatal railway of Zimbabwe. NRZ operates about 3,000 km of rail at the 1.067 m gauge providing passenger and freight services. NRZ has an important transit function in the southern part of Africa and is well linked with neighbouring countries: toward the north, at Victoria Falls, the system links to the Zambia Railways, crossing the Victoria Falls Bridge. Towards the Indian Ocean, the system links to the Beira Railroad Corporation in Mozambique. A second line towards Mozambique reaches Maputo. To the west, a connecting line link ups to Botswana Railways to reach South Africa, eventually reaching Durban and Cape Town. A direct line to South Africa is provided from Bulawayo by the Beitbridge Bulawayo Railway. The electrified (25kV AC) 313 km Gweru-Harare section has been seriously vandalized and the electric trains have since stopped operating.

The rail sector in Zimbabwe is in dire need of recapitalisation as the wagons, locomotives, tracks and signalling systems are all antiquated and in need of replacement. The NRZ has also suffered of the general decline of the country's economy. Neglect of maintenance, lacking spare parts and overdue replacement of equipment have led to a situation where only part of the railroad net is in good condition and equipment problems have led to reduced service. Goods transport has declined, from 4 million tonnes in 2015 to 2.5 million tonnes in 2018.

The NRZ network is divided in three operational regions:

• Eastern Region: Mutare – Harare - Chinhoyi axis, with a branch line to Bindura/ Shamva
• Midlands Region: Somabhula – Harare with branch line to Masvingo and Redcliff
• Southern Region: Beitbridge – Rutenga – Dabuka and Chicualacuala – Rutenga; Dabuka – Mpopoma – Victoria Falls

For contact information, please see the following links:  4.1 Zimbabwe Government Contact List

For more information on the Zimbabwe railway network, please see the following attachment: Additional Zimbabwe Railway Information

Travel Time Matrix

Capacity Table

Key Route Information

Key Stations

There are no major water transport facilities of any significance available in Zimbabwe. There is a small ferry passenger service on Lake Kariba plying between Mlibizi and Kariba which is used mainly for recreational activities. 

For contact information, please see the following link: 4.1 Zimbabwe Government Contact List

Company Information

There is no waterway transport for cargo available in Zimbabwe.

Port Information

Binga and Kariba are the only ports in Zimbabwe. However, there is nothing of logistical importance at these ports. 

Zimbabwe has a sensitive political and economic climate. However, the country has functional and effective logistics systems in the field of transport and logistics, dedicated to serving both the commercial sector as well as international humanitarian organizations. A wide range of logistics services and solutions, from the storage of general merchandise to leading-edge solutions for the supply chain, are found in all major towns and cities, which include:

• Specialized handling equipment
• Computerized warehouse management
• Q-HSE policy
• Advanced receiving and inspection processes
• Secured storage
• Inventory control
• Value-added services (repacking, co-packing, labelling, etc.)
• Order preparation
• Cross-docking

For contact information for the storage companies, please see the following link: 4.6 Zimbabwe Storage and Milling Company Contact List

For more information on Zimbabwe storage, please see the following attachment: Additional Zimbabwe Storage Information 

Commercial Storage

[1] Warehouse Type: Open storage, container, rub-hall, silo, concrete, other, unspecified

[2] Warehouse Access: Raised-siding, flat

[3] Warehouse condition: Appears intact, appears damaged, under construction/repair

Storage Used by Humanitarian Organizations

Major humanitarian organizations in Zimbabwe (UN and local and international NGOs) lease or hire out warehouses from commercial service providers. This is a standard practice in Zimbabwe for both humanitarian and commercial actors in the country. Adequacy, accessibility, and availability of ancillary services is not a challenge in Zimbabwe, especially if the warehouse is located in a town or city. Use of mobile storage facilities is also common among the humanitarian organisations operating in Zimbabwe. Collaboration and space sharing is common with humanitarian actors and this has seen savings being realised by organisations engaging such collaborations.

The WFP Zimbabwe operation has 4 operational warehouses and several extended delivery points run by NGOs in partnership with WFP. The warehouses are strategically located to service the most insecure and needy parts of the country. These warehouses are located in Harare, Bulawayo Mutare and Masvingo. 

[1] Warehouse Type: Open storage, container, rub-hall, silo, concrete, other, unspecified

[2] Warehouse Access: Raised-siding, flat

[3] Warehouse condition: Appears intact, appears damaged, under construction/repair

Public Sector Storage

The Department of Civil Protection (DCP) has a staff complement of seven officers at the Head Office. The operations of the Civil Protection Organization are multi-sectoral and interdisciplinary in scope. Their mission is to coordinate and promote strategic planning for emergencies at the individual, community, sectoral, local authority and national levels through regulatory mechanisms in order to provide for and ensure optimal emergency preparedness and disaster prevention in Zimbabwe. The mandate of the DCP covers overall coordination of all stakeholders involved in disaster risk management, promotes preparedness planning, prompts emergency response, early recovery and rehabilitation of affected elements and advocates for integration of disaster risk reduction into development for sustainability.

The core functions of ensuring the attainment of optimal capacity for disaster risk management include:

• Develop and maintain a disaster risk management framework in line with international best practice
• To strengthen coping capacities of the general public in relation to the country’s risk profile
• To develop mechanisms to address the identified gaps in the above functions

[1] Warehouse Type: Open storage, container, rub-hall, silo, concrete, other, unspecified

[2] Warehouse Access: Raised-siding, flat

[3] Warehouse condition: Appears intact, appears damaged, under construction/repair

For more information, please see the Civil Protection Directorate of Zimbabwe website. 

Cold Chain

The cold chain is comprised mainly of private companies.

[1] Cold Room Positive, Cold Room Negative, Refrigerator, Freezer,

[2] Compression, Absorption, Solar, Other, unspecified

For more information on Zimbabwe storage, please see the following attachment: Additional Zimbabwe Storage Information

Disclaimer: Inclusion of company information in the LCA does not imply any business relationship between the supplier and WFP / Logistics Cluster, and is used solely as a determinant of services, and capacities.

Please note: WFP / Logistics Cluster maintain complete impartiality and are not in a position to endorse, comment on any company's suitability as a reputable service provider.

The milling capacity of the country is commendable. There are several players in the market who are able to handle large amounts of tonnage. The infrastructure for milling is still in place albeit after eleven years of poor maintenance and underutilization. The facilities will need extensive refurbishment should there be an interest in redeveloping this industry. Below is an example of the National Foods infrastructure. 

Milling Company National Foods Ltd  

National Foods have possibly the best and most comprehensive milling related facilities within the country. The network and infrastructure was designed to accommodate the farming capacity and national demand for both storage and milling.