Zimbabwe’s platinum boom: Where is the wealth?

Zimbabwe’s mining sector recorded $8.5bn in export earnings in 2025, up from $5.9bn in 2024, while platinum prices reached $2,923 an ounce on January 26. The country has the world’s second-largest known deposits of platinum group metals after South Africa, and mining accounts for about 75 percent of exports and 14.5 percent of GDP. Yet residents of mining communities such as Mhondoro-Ngezi say roads, schools, water supplies and other basic services have not kept pace with the wealth extracted from their land.