THE END OF THE MUGABE ERA IN ZIMBABWE: CHANGE OR CONTINUITY?

Abstract

In November 2017, after 37 years, Robert Mugabe’s government ended in Zimbabwe. This change in power is a milestone in the history of the country and of the African continent as a whole. The aim of the present article is to analyze the factors that conditioned Mugabe’s fall from power as well as possible changes in the country’s political context. It is assumed that the country’s external relations, combined with the internal divisions of the party, have conditioned the crisis that culminated in the end of Mugabe’s rule. The stance of non-interference in domestic affairs of its African neighbors and Zimbabwe’s main economic partner, China, had enabled Mugabe to remain in power for nearly four decades, but also allowed that the transition to Mnangagwa, assisted by the military, occurred without major intercurrences. ZANU-PF’s internal disputes, fueled by the increasing need for Mugabe to indicate a successor, gradually weakened Mugabe’s power and created new alliances. The change in the leading figure of the country, however, does not seem to indicate significant changes in the political conditions of the country, although some changes in the conduct of the economy might occur.