THE COVID-19 pandemic caused multiple shocks to businesses in Zimbabwe, with close to 90 percent of formal businesses suspending operations for about seven weeks on average since the outbreak of the pandemic in the country in March, according to a survey by the World Bank.
The impact is largest among micro and small firms in the textiles sector in Harare, and among exporters, the WB said in the survey carried out on 813 firms between June 12 and July 13.
The firms surveyed to determine the impact of COVID-19 are in four provinces namely Harare, Bulawayo, Manicaland, and Midlands.
“Most (86 percent) experienced a drop in demand, and disruptions to supply of input, raw material and merchandize for resale (76 percent),” the WB said in its report released Monday.
However, large firms and those in the food sector seem to be less impacted by the pandemic, the WB said.
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