New luxury buildings transform Zimbabwe’s capital

After decades-long stagnation, the skyline of Harare, Zimbabwe’s capital, is undergoing significant transformation, creating a new panorama, as foreign investor confidence in the southern African country grows, and new businesses open.

Zimbabwe is experiencing its strongest growth cycle in decades with the International Monetary Fund and the government projecting a 5 percent gross domestic product growth rate this year.

The World Bank removed Zimbabwe from its list of fragile and conflict-affected situations, effective from July, signaling a major milestone in the country’s economic turnaround, governance, and fiscal reforms.

Stronger growth and brighter economic prospects have resulted in a surge in property investors, triggering a boom in property development with the Zimbabwe Investment and Development Agency recording $2 billion in real estate investment commitments in the first quarter of this year.

According to local analysts, investment in high-end properties can be attributed to several key factors. Economic reforms have improved the business environment, attracting both local and international investors while government incentives and policies encouraging investment have played a role in boosting confidence among investors, leading to a more dynamic property market.

Zimbabwe’s Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube, presenting his 2026 midterm national budget review in August, said the country’s ongoing re-engagement efforts had improved investor confidence with foreign direct investment rising to $965 million last year from $597 million in 2024.

The new investment opportunities have witnessed Harare going through some well-planned structural developments that combine luxury residential living, high-rise gated communities, commercial, retail, hotels and recreational spaces.

The latest high-end structural developments and infrastructure overhauls, mostly concentrated in the central business district and upmarket suburbs, have seen growth of the national economy, local employment creation, upgrading of infrastructure, and technology transfer.

Among the upmarket structures recently completed or under construction in Harare are high-end properties such as Millennium Heights in Borrowdale and the Mall of Zimbabwe, the largest mall in the country. The Afreximbank African Trade Centre, designed to position Harare as a gateway for continental trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area, is nearing completion.

Economic turnaround

According to Citigroup, a multinational investment bank and financial services corporation, Zimbabwe is breaking away from its past as the economic turnaround in the country takes hold.

“Where perceptions and reality may now be increasingly out of kilter is the speed with which an economic turnaround has started to play out in Zimbabwe since 2025,” David Cowan, the bank’s chief Africa economist, wrote in a client note at the end of last month.

These positive reports on Zimbabwe are further expected to see more investors injecting funds into the country’s real estate sector.

At the end of last month, Hilton Hotels signed a deal for the construction of a 140-room hotel in Harare, marking the hospitality group’s first property in the country, which is scheduled to anchor a premium live-work-play commercial space.

Also located close to Harare is the $500 million smart-city development which is taking shape next to the Chinese-built six-story New Parliament Building. The project will introduce a futuristic high-tech ecosystem.

To further boost the construction boom, the Zimbabwe government says it is reviewing the country’s building regulations to cut costs and accelerate development.

“The review of the model building bylaws will expedite the implementation of alternative technology and address the need to construct settlements using climate-resilient materials and methods,” the Minister of National Housing and Social Amenities Paul Mavima said.

To attract investors, the government has also approved slashing business license fees to foster growth and reduce barriers.

However, while Harare is undergoing massive high-end urban renewal, concerns have been raised over the latest wave of housing demolitions by the Harare City Council, currently underway mostly in the low-income suburbs of the capital.

The targeted houses were, according to the local authority, built on illegally acquired council land.

The author is a freelancer for China Daily.