HARARE — Zimbabwe’s government is seeking parliamentary approval to regularise US$9.64 billion in unauthorised expenditure incurred by the Ministry of Finance between 2015 and 2018, nearly a decade after some of the spending took place.

The Financial Adjustments (No. 2) Bill, 2026, identified as H.B. 10 of 2026, seeks to condone expenditure that exceeded amounts approved by Parliament or was incurred for purposes for which no funds had been appropriated.

According to the Bill, the Ministry of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion incurred unauthorised expenditure of US$25.3 million in 2015, US$1.49 billion in 2016, US$4.56 billion in 2017 and US$3.56 billion in 2018.

The combined amount is US$9,638,603,082.

The largest amount was recorded in 2017, when unauthorised expenditure reached US$4.56 billion, followed by US$3.56 billion in 2018.

The Bill does not provide a breakdown of the transactions responsible for the expenditure or explain why the amounts exceeded parliamentary appropriations.

In its explanatory memorandum, the government says Section 307 of the Constitution requires the finance minister to introduce legislation seeking parliamentary condonation whenever a ministry or government department spends beyond its approved allocation or on activities for which no money was appropriated.

“If a Government Ministry or Department spends money in any financial year in excess of the amount appropriated, or for a purpose for which nothing was appropriated,” the memorandum states, the minister is required to introduce a Bill seeking condonation.

The Constitution requires such legislation to be introduced within 60 days after the extent of the unauthorised expenditure has been established.

However, the Bill does not state when the government established the full extent of the expenditure, making it unclear whether the proposed legislation complies with that constitutional deadline.

The proposed law contains four substantive provisions seeking retrospective approval for the expenditure incurred in each financial year from 2015 to 2018.

For 2015, Parliament is being asked to condone US$25,305,741, while the amount for 2016 stands at US$1,490,890,087.

The 2017 figure rises sharply to US$4,562,064,124 before declining to US$3,560,343,130 in 2018.

The spending covered the final years of former President Robert Mugabe’s administration and the early period of President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government, which took office in November 2017.

The legislation does not identify which transactions occurred under either administration.

If passed, the Bill would provide parliamentary condonation for the specified expenditure, but it does not propose fresh allocations of US$9.64 billion for spending in 2026.

Nor does the Bill establish that the expenditure was stolen or fraudulently used. Unauthorised expenditure, in this context, refers to spending outside the limits or purposes approved through the parliamentary appropriation process.

The proposed legislation raises questions about budgetary controls, parliamentary oversight and the length of time taken to bring historical expenditure before lawmakers for approval.

The government has not explained in the Bill why the expenditure was incurred without the required appropriations or why condonation is being sought in 2026 for spending dating back to 2015.

The Bill must pass through Parliament and receive presidential assent before becoming law.