Safety / Visa / Work Permit for Zimbabwe??

Hi Nitnat UK !

Welcome to Expat.com!
I hope the other forum members will be able to help you out.

Regards
Armand

Best you take a trip to Zimbabwe to check things out before you make a final decision.

hello.In which part of Zim are you supposed to stay?But anyway...The place is safe.Criminality in the big town is raising as anywhere in the world,but it's not dangerous.There are any kind of schools according to what you want to pay (and where you stay)..For the visa I don't know. ..I don't know if a foreign would like to live the whole life here...bah..anyway you'll have a round way ticket

beppe wrote:

hello.In which part of Zim are you supposed to stay?But anyway...The place is safe.Criminality in the big town is raising as anywhere in the world,but it's not dangerous.There are any kind of schools according to what you want to pay (and where you stay)..For the visa I don't know. ..I don't know if a foreign would like to live the whole life here...bah..anyway you'll have a round way ticket

Hi Beppe,

We would live in Harare as this is where my partner grew up and where his fathers business was based before.
Why do you say a foreigner wouldn't like to live there?

Thanks,
Natalie

maickj wrote:

Zimbabwe is one of the safest place in sub Saharan Africa. I am Zimbabwean but I have lived and visited many other countries. In terms of the schools, there are very nice schools and with the best education. I would advice you look for the ones that suit your pocket because there are some very nice and exclusive schools for expats. The life is generally very good and the food quite tasty. For the visa I dont know. Actually, never listen to the international media, the stories they report are so biased and dont reflect reality on the ground for Zimbabwe and most African countries. I think the best is to go to Zimbabwe for a short visit before you settle.

Hi Maickj.

Thank you for your reply. I will look more in to the schooling costs.
Yes, we hear many stories about crime in Zimbabwe but speaking to my OH's friends who live there, they all say it is not like that at all.
I know a trip over there is the best thing to do before we make the move, sometimes it is hard to see the true lifestyle though when you are on a holiday!

Thanks,
Natalie

stumpy wrote:

Best you take a trip to Zimbabwe to check things out before you make a final decision.

Very true Stumpy, thank you for your reply.

well this is a great opening for you and your son ,first of all schooling is very good standards are high and you have no worries about safety what you read and see are not always true some are repeated ipicture and news ,then comes your visa issue which is not a problem,and also since your partner is local,i hope this helps

Hi Nitnat
I am serial expat.

It is always a personal choice whether a partner should move together with the other especially if they come from 2 different countries. There will be sacrifices especially for dual career families. Also moving to your partner's home country may “unlevel the playing field” a bit – so think through.

Regarding your 6 year child – education level in Zimbabwe is high, unfortunately so is the school feels and cost of extra activities. We know families that chose to leave Zimbabwe because of this reason. We also know families that register their kids in about 3-4 schools prior to the birth of their child in order to increase the chance of obtaining a spot in a good school and we also know families that had to pay up to $1,000 per child per school as non-refundable deposit. Where I come from, this is simply ridiculous but this is how things work here. 

Regarding safety – Zimbabwe is relatively safe compared to its neighbour, South Africa and the rest of Africa. Having said that, common sense prevails. Is this the best place in Africa to raise a family – my answer will be yes.

I cannot comment on the Visa or Work Permit – hopefully other members will help.

Have you thought of accommodation or is this sorted by your in laws? Renting can be madly costly although not as much when compared to Lusaka.

I agree with Stumpy that the best thing to do is to take a trip to Zimbabwe to check things out before moving although I never had that luxury myself. I usually make the best out of my every assignment.

Regards
Karen

lets start with the kid ,schooling it all depends on where you send the kid to.some overcrowded gvt schools will cost you between usd100 to 200 whereas affluent schools will also demand something like usd500 to about usd1000 or more per term.on safety don't be active in politics you are safer that way.work permit if you are a Zimbabwean national why do you need it.if not you need to apply for one.hope I have helped you answering.

Hi Ninnat,

I live in Zimbabwe since 2011. You should come here first before you take the decision to move. Some considerations:

1- Health: You need to go to a private clinic (theres several). make sure you have an health insurance and contract for evacuation to South Africa and also a private ambulance service. If you have an accident, a public ambulance, if comes, can take several hours. Public hospitals have a lack of equipment and staff

2- Public Transport: the only public transport that exist is what they call Combis- 12 seater vans that usually take up to 20 persons. Dont use them. Taxis are old and the drivers are crazy and together with the combies, a big part of the road acident causes

3- Roads: very bad, with no marks of the ground. the traffic lights usually dont work and there is no road illumination at night. Avoid to drive at night, because cars drive with only 1 or even no ligths at all. The prices of used cards is crazy, you should bring one from UK, using the "returning citizen" facilities, which avoid the payment of a tax. Buying a car in second hand in dangerous, because they change the mileage of the car and its very expensive.

4- Social_ thereŽs no shops like Zara, Mango or others. I personally dont make any shop here, because there is not quality shops. You cannot find a pair of LeviŽs 501 for example. The cultural life is very low

5- Housing: there is not new construction. You cannot see one crane in Harare. Old houses with 3 rooms, on a good area can cost from 2000USD to 4000USD a month.

6- Safety- Zim is a very safe place compared with other African countries. You just need to be careful and everything will be ok.

7- Schools- Ridiculous expensive

8- Electricity and Water- there is frequent power and water cuts. Be sure that the house we re you re staying has a borehole and a generator

if you can support all this, then zim is a good place. friendly people, good weather, safe.

Have you ever been in any African Capital?

Good Luck!

hi! Do you live in Zim? I am sorry to say and with utmost respect, but I have no idea where you got the idea for your post.

Road Accidents:

Shocking Zimbabwe traffic accident statistics

I've just come across some shocking statistics on Zimbabwe's road traffic safety – or lack thereof. According to Transport, Communications and Infrastructure Development Minister Nicholas Goche:

In Zimbabwe there are 28 deaths per every 10 000 registered vehicles and there is a traffic collision every 15 minutes with an average of 45 people getting injured per day while on average five people are killed per day.

That's right. An average of five people are killed per day on Zimbabwe's roads. If 5 people per day were dying in political violence, there would be an outcry. SADC would be sending negotiators, the media would be covering events, and the responsible parties would be facing international censure.

- See more at: kubatanablogs.net/kubatana/shocking-zimbabwe-traffic-accident-statistics/#sthash.uIlmLjZo

regarding the price of houses, just check Zim classifieds:

classifieds.co.zw/category/325/Harare-North.html

Who wants to come to Zim and live in a bad area? of course you find cheap houses in the suburbs.....
"Prices for 3 bedrooms in middle and low density can be as low as 600 for a 3 bed-roomed apartment. " are you talking about Chintungwiza or Mbare? Who will come from UK to zim and live on those areas?

the Roads are OK? compared to which country?

New Houses being built? where? Just check the main realstate websites and show me how many new houses you can see being advert or drive around Harare and point which places new houses are being built.

I still think the best option is to come and see first. I have moved here in 2011 and I will stay long, and I actually like it, but people should be prepared for what they will find.

cheers!

hi!

well the best way of Ninat to decide is to come and see by herself.

I am staying here, because the salary and the conditions that were offered to me covers all my concerns, including the ones that I have stated.

I still maintain all I have stated.

I wish you all the best!

Cheers

Guys
It's been more than 3 years now that I have lived in Harare. I read the stuff maickj and archie_bunker wrote with great interest. Things are not bad but it is also not great. It all depends on what you are willing to accept and pay.

Public transport – the combis are moving coffins. Period.

Roads in Harare are potholed and mostly unmarked. Efforts have been made by individuals and like-minded organizations to improve them. I do agree that it is good compared to West and East Africa or even Mozambique. However main roads connecting Zimbabwe to South Africa and Mozambique are currently under rehabilitation.

On the social front – fashion clothes shopping is sad. However, one makes a different plan.
On the culture & arts side of things – We need to understand that for a struggling economy, stuff like this will get less priority. On & off, we have Barnyard Theatre travelling from South Africa to perform and a lot of North Harareans seem to attend them. I reserve my comments. Reps, the amateur theatre puts good stuff on, same as the National Ballet but these organizations are struggling. 

On the shopping for groceries – yes, we get the good chain supermarkets and there are good bi-weekly fresh produce markets selling organic produces.

Unemployment – the actual percentage kept but sufficient to say it's above 45%.

Now on houses  - I think maickj is a bit out of touch. Correct that there are houses under renovation or new constructions in nice areas – but will anyone rent them out for less than $1500? Those $600 a month in Northern Suburbs that maickj mentioned are related to sub-lets or cottages and likely not to have sufficient security requirement and not a self-contained detached house. Check the link: http://www.classifieds.co.zw/index.php? … c=1&page=3
Also, I must have surveyed more than 20 properties in the past or accompany friends to survey places they intend to rent. The facts are – the lower the rent, the more work you as tenant need to do to the property. We have seen so many houses with perfect descriptions on the ad yet on actual viewing, we found unhinged kitchen cabinet doors, dirty walls and broken parquet floors!

I agree with archie_bunker, know what you are getting into.

Cheers

dont stress..

Inbox me, I can assist