Abstract

This paper employed the Auto-Regressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) model to examine the effects of export diversification on economic growth using Zimbabwe’s annual time series data for the period 1995 to 2020. The Herfindahl index (HI) was used as a measure of export diversification. The control variables included are; capital, labour, direct investment, GDP per capita, the number of export products and secondary school enrolment. The empirical findings showed that export diversification impacts positively on GDP growth in Zimbabwe. The study recommended that Zimbabwe should continue to diversify its exports in order to sustain long-term economic growth. Export diversification will allow Zimbabwe to stabilize its export earnings and hedge against volatile international commodity prices. This is important for achieving Zimbabwe’s objectives of stable long-term growth, job creation, stable export earnings and also attaining its long-term goal of being an upper middle income country by 2030.

Key words:  Exports, export diversification, economic growth, Auto-Regressive Distributed Lag (ARDL), Southern Africa Development Community, Zimbabwe.