" Tsvangirai, leader of the Movement for Democratic Change, set off yesterday on a tour of the US and Europe, seeking to persuade Barack Obama, Gordon Brown and other heads of state that this tormented nation is now on an upward trajectory. Yesterday, in the Netherlands, he said he was not touring with a "begging bowl".
But from a base of rock bottom, it could hardly be getting worse. Last year Zimbabwe – once the region's biggest economy after South Africa – stared total collapse in the face: hyperinflation at a world record 500bn per cent, unemployment at more than 97%, shops and supermarkets empty, 5 million people in need of international food aid and nearly 5,000 dead from Africa's biggest cholera outbreak in 15 years. A superficial normality has since returned to the streets of the capital, Harare, with traffic flowing, people shopping and children walking to school in smart uniforms. The city hosted a jazz festival at the weekend and is striving to rebrand itself as a tourist destination during next year's football World Cup in neighbouring South Africa. "
The Guardian's David Smith writes ......
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