Tapiwa Mashakada
Tapiwa Maji-Marefu Mashakada is a Zimbabwean who is the former minister of Economic Planning and Investment Promotion during the Government of National Unity from 2009 to 2013. He is a politician, acting MDC-T National Spokesperson and a member of parliament for Hatfield. He is a chief economist, trade and investment facilitation expert.
Personal Details
Born: 2 January 1968 in Gutu, Masvingo Province.
School / Education
Primary: Machitenda Primary School.
Secondary: Lundi Secondary School.
Tertiary: He graduated with BA in Economics, MSc Economics from the University of Zimbabwe and a PhD Economics from Stellenbosch University. Mashakada is also a holder of a diploma in personnel management – 1997 and a certificate in economic policy strategies obtained from Williams College, Massachusetts (USA). [1]
Service/Career
He is an Economist by profession. He is an expert in trade and investment facilitation in frontier markets such as Zimbabwe. He also does political risk analysis and due diligence on ease of doing business in Zimbabwe and SADC.
He was one of the members who founded the opposition party MDC. He was the secretary for policy research in the MDC Alliance until he decided to join hands with the Thokozani Khupe led MDC-T.
From 1991 to 1998, Mashakada was a Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) unionist and helped mobilise thousands of workers against the International Monetary Fund and World Bank – backed Economic Structural Adjustment Programme (ESAP). He did advocacy work on behalf of the ZCTU on labour and economic rights and was a resource person at the National Working People’s Convention held in Hillside Harare, which led to the formation of the MDC.
The former MDC deputy secretary-general was also involved in consultative processes many years prior to the formation of the MDC. He was co-opted into the Harare provincial executive at the inaugural MDC congress in Chitungwiza in February 2000. In June 2000, he was elected the MP for Hatfield and also in the same year he was elected vice chairman for Harare Province.
In 2005, he was re-elected the MP for Hatfield.
In March 2006, he was elected deputy secretary general at the MDC congress held at the City Sports Centre in Harare. He is a former member of the MDC national Standing Committee. From 1991 to 1996, Mashakada was chief economist with the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions. In 1997, he was a designated Agent for the National Employment Council for the Furniture Manufacturing Industry. In 1998, he became the general secretary and chief executive of the National Employment Council for the Engineering and Iron and Steel Industry and Engineering Medical Aid Society respectively. That year he also became a lecturer on labour economics at the University of Zimbabwe. He was also a board member of the Association of Health Care Funders of Zimbabwe (AhfoZ). Together with Tendai Biti, Mashakada was one of the brains behind RESTART, the MDC’s economic recovery blueprint.
In the 2000 Elections, (see A History of Zimbabwean Elections) Hatfield returned to Parliament:
- Tapiwa Mashakada of MDC with 11 740 votes,
- Irene Zindi of Zanu PF with 5 413 votes,
- David Farai Muzorewa of UP with 124 votes,
- Dambudzo Frank Heart Jangano, Independent, with 111 votes,
- Mike Nedi Duro, Independent, with MDC 62 votes,
- Tafadzwa Abel Savanhu, Independent, with 58 votes,
- White Robson, Independent, with 39 votes.
In the 2013 Elections, (see A History of Zimbabwean Elections) Hatfield returned to Parliament:
- Tapiwa Mashakada of MDC–T with 9 031 votes or 64.62 percent,
- Acie Lumumba of Zanu PF with 4 246 votes or 30.38 percent,
- Linus Mushonga of MDC–N with 665 votes or 4.76 percent,
- 1 others with 33 votes or 0.24 percent.
Total 13 975 votes
