By Fanuel James
Parliament is changing its approach to budget oversight, moving from approving allocations to tracking whether funds are released and translate into services on the ground.
The shift was outlined at the 2026 Pre-Budget Seminar which closed at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair Grounds in Bulawayo.
Revenue Up, Spending Down
Speaker of Parliament Advocate Jacob Mudenda told delegates that Treasury had collected ZiG137.8 billion.
This was against a target of ZiG124.4 billion by June 2026, yet overall budget utilisation stood at 42.5%.
“The question is no longer how much we allocate, but how much is actually released and what it does for the people,” Mudenda said.
“Collecting more revenue means nothing if utilisation remains at 42.5 percent.”
Four-Stage Tracking Model
Mudenda said Parliament will now track four stages of the budget.
These are appropriation, what Parliament approves for each ministry and displacement, whether Treasury reallocates funds to other votes during the year.
It will also cover utilisation, how much is actually released and spent.
The last part is service delivery where citizens receive in terms of schools, clinics, roads and other services.
“The era of applauding allocations is over. We must interrogate utilisation and service delivery,” he said.
“A budget that is approved but not released is a promise that is never kept.”
Evidence of Underfunding
Delegates cited several cases.
The Ministry of ICT requested ZiG10.7 billion but received ZiG644 million, which is 5.96 percent of its bid.
Basic Education Assistance Module (BEAM) was allocated ZiG5.6 billion, but only ZiG85 million had been released by June.
Meanwhile, hralth and agriculture funding remains below the 15 percent Abuja Declaration and 10 percent Maputo Declaration targets, respectively.
Mudenda said such gaps undermine the 2027 theme of Accelerating Economic Transformation and Building Resilience to Climate and Global Shocks.
“You cannot build resilience to climate shocks when ministries receive five percent of their bids,” he said.
Senate Demands Quarterly Reports
Senate President Mabel Chinomona said in her closing remarks that the Senate will push for mandatory quarterly utilisation reports to be tabled before portfolio committees.
“We must go beyond appropriation.
“Parliament must follow the money to the classroom, to the clinic, to the farm,” Chinomona said.
She said ministries must be required to report physical outputs, not just financial expenditure.
“The public does not eat allocations.
“They need to see drugs in clinics and books in schools,” she said.
Parliament’s pre-budget report is expected to be tabled ahead of the 2027 National Budget Statement later this month.
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