Security sector reform in Zimbabwe: What, why and how?

This policy brief considers the need for security sector reform in Zimbabwe and highlights possible short- and long-term priorities in this regard.

On the 15th of September 2008, a power-sharing agreement was brokered between the major political parties in Zimbabwe, namely, the Tsvangirai-led Movement for Democratic Change, the Mutambara-led Movement for Democratic Change and the then ruling Zimbabwe African National Union–Patriotic Front. 

This Global Political Agreement paved the way for the establishment of a Government of National Unity and the reconstruction of the society at large.

The formation of the new inclusive government provides an opportunity for considering fundamental reforms in the provision of security and justice services to the people of Zimbabwe. 

Over the past ten years, the Zimbabwean security sector has increasingly come into the spotlight as unduly politicised, non-partisan, and as infringing on the human rights of the citizens.

This policy brief considers the need for security sector reform in Zimbabwe and highlights possible short-term and long-term priorities in this regard.

Authors: Cheryl Hendricks and Lauren Hutton