Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Zimbabwe
conventional short form: Zimbabwe
former: Southern Rhodesia, Rhodesia

Government type:
parliamentary democracy

Capital:
name: Harare
geographic coordinates: 17 49 S, 31 02 E
time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

Administrative divisions:
8 provinces and 2 cities* with provincial status; Bulawayo*, Harare*, Manicaland, Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Masvingo, Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, Midlands

Independence:
18 April 1980 (from the UK)

National holiday:
Independence Day, 18 April (1980)

Constitution:
previous 1979; latest approved by referendum 16 March 2013, approved by Parliament 9 May 2013 (2013)

Legal system:
mixed legal system of English common law, Roman-Dutch civil law, and customary law

International law organization participation:
has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
[see also: Suffrage country ranks ]

:
chief of state: Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE (since 31 December 1987); Vice President Joice MUJURU (since 6 December 2004)
head of government: Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE (since 31 December 1987) note - according to the new constitution, following the 31 July 2013 presidential elections the position of Prime Minister was abolished
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president; responsible to the House of Assembly
elections: presidential candidates nominated with a nomination paper signed by at least 10 registered voters (at least one from each province) and elected by popular vote for a five-year term (no term limits); elections last held on 31 July 2013 (next to be held in 2018); co-vice presidents drawn from party leadership
election results: Robert Gabriel MUGABE reelected president; percent of vote - Robert Gabriel MUGABE 61.1%, Morgan TSVANGIRAI 34.4%, Welshman NCUBE 2.7% other 1.8%; note - the election process was considered flawed and roundly criticised by election monitors and international bodies; both the AU and the SADC endoresed the results of the election with some concerns

Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament consists of a Senate (80 seats - 60 members elected by popular vote for a five-year term, 18 traditional chiefs elected by the Council of Chiefs and 2 seats reserved for people with disabilities) and a House of Assembly (270 seats - members elected by popular vote for five-year terms and 60 seats reserved for women who are identified by their parties and nominated by proportional representation)
elections: last held on 31 July 2013 (next to be held in 2018)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ZANU-PF 37 MD-T 21, MDC-N 2, chiefs 18, people with disabilities 2; House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ZANU-PF 197, MDC-T 70, MDC-N 2, independent 1

Judicial branch:
highest court(s): Supreme Court (consists of the chief justice and 4 judges)
judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges appointed by the president upon recommendation of the Judicial Service Commission, an independent body consisting of the chief justice, Public Service Commission chairman, attorney general, and 2-3 members appointed by the president; judges normally serve until age 65, but can elect to serve until age 70
subordinate courts: High Court, regional magistrate courts, and special courts

Political parties and leaders:
African National Party or ANP [Egypt DZINEMUNHENZVA]
Movement for Democratic Change - Tsvangirai or MDC-T [Morgan TSVANGIRAI]
Movement for Democratic Change - Ncube or MDC-N [Welshman NCUBE]
Peace Action is Freedom for All or PAFA
United Parties [Abel MUZOREWA]
United People's Party or UPP [Daniel SHUMBA]
Zimbabwe African National Union-Ndonga or ZANU-Ndonga [Wilson KUMBULA]
Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front or ZANU-PF [Robert Gabriel MUGABE]
Zimbabwe African Peoples Union or ZAPU [Dumiso DABENGWA]
Zimbabwe Youth in Alliance or ZIYA

Political pressure groups and leaders: Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition
National Constitutional Assembly or NCA [Lovemore MADHUKU]
Women of Zimbabwe Arise or WOZA [Jenni WILLIAMS]
Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions or ZCTU [Wellington CHIBEBE]

International organization participation:
ACP, AfDB, AU, COMESA, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNISFA, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Richard CHIBUWE (since April 2014)
chancery: 1608 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009
telephone: [1] (202) 332-7100
FAX: [1] (202) 483-9326

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador David Bruce WHARTON (since 15 November 2012)
embassy: 172 Herbert Chitepo Avenue, Harare
mailing address: P. O. Box 3340, Harare
telephone: [263] (4) 250-593 through 250-594
FAX: [263] (4) 796-488, or 722-618

Flag description:
seven equal horizontal bands of green, yellow, red, black, red, yellow, and green with a white isosceles triangle edged in black with its base on the hoist side; a yellow Zimbabwe bird representing the long history of the country is superimposed on a red five-pointed star in the center of the triangle, which symbolizes peace; green represents agriculture, yellow mineral wealth, red the blood shed to achieve independence, and black stands for the native people

National symbol(s):
Zimbabwe bird symbol, African fish eagle, flame lily

National anthem:
name: "Kalibusiswe Ilizwe leZimbabwe" [Northern Ndebele language] "Simudzai Mureza WeZimbabwe" [Shona] (Blessed Be the Land of Zimbabwe)
lyrics/music: Solomon MUTSWAIRO/Fred Lecture CHANGUNDEGA
note: adopted 1994