Zimbabwe excluded from €500 million EU aid package over NGO crackdown
Zimbabwe has been excluded from a new €500 million European Union (EU) humanitarian aid package for Africa, following the enactment of a controversial law that restricts the operations of non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
The EU decision comes in response to Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s signing of the Private Voluntary Organisations (PVO) Amendment Act last month. The law, widely criticised by civil society and international observers, is seen as repressive and potentially damaging to human rights advocacy and humanitarian work.
A European Commission spokesperson confirmed the suspension of aid to Zimbabwe ahead of the EU-African Union Ministerial Meeting, which opened this week in Brussels, the News Day reports.
Despite the aid suspension, the EU continues to pursue economic engagement with Zimbabwe. At the inaugural EU-Zimbabwe Business Forum in Harare, EU Ambassador Jobst von Kirchmann reaffirmed the bloc’s commitment to strengthening long-term trade and investment ties.
“Our main goal with this platform is to elevate our trade relationship and, for the first time, bring EU firms to Zimbabwean shores to strengthen our relationships,” Von Kirchmann said, noting that bilateral trade already exceeds US$1 billion.
The forum, focused on key sectors including horticulture, mining, and renewable energy, was attended by European investors and Zimbabwean officials. Zimbabwe Investment and Development Agency (ZIDA) CEO Tafadzwa Chinamo described the forum as a confidence-building step for foreign investors.
“The EU firms were able to see first-hand opportunities in all sectors of the Zimbabwean economy and we’re glad they managed to see for themselves what Zimbabwe has to offer,” Chinamo noted.
The €500 million package is intended to support vulnerable populations across Africa, with priority given to crisis-affected regions such as the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Sudan, the Sahel, and the Lake Chad Basin.
