Long-form name: Republic of Zimbabwe

Type: presidential system with bicameral legislature

Capital: Harare

Administrative divisions: 8 provinces; Manicaland, Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, Midlands, Victoria (commonly called Masvingo)

Independence: 18 April 1980 (from UK; formerly Southern Rhodesia)

Constitution: 21 December 1979

Legal system: mixture of Roman-Dutch and English common law

National holiday: Independence Day, 18 April (1980)

Branches: legislative authority resides in a Parliament consisting of a 100-member House of Assembly and a 40-member Senate; executive authority lies with a Cabinet led by the president; the High Court is the superior judicial authority

Leaders: Robert Gabriel MUGABE, Executive President (since December 1987)

Suffrage: universal over age 18

Elections: last held July 1985; next in 1990

Political parties and leaders: Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU), Robert Mugabe; Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU), Joshua Nkomo; Zimbabwe African National Union-Sithole (ZANU-S), Ndabaningi Sithole; others have no seats in Parliament; ZANU and ZAPU agreed to merge in December 1987, making Zimbabwe a de facto one-party state; the new party is called ZANU-PF (Patriotic Front) and Mugabe is its leader

Voting strength: (July 1985 election and subsequent redistribution of seats) ZANU 80 seats, ZAPU 13 seats, ZANU-S 1 seat, ZANU-sponsored independents 6 seats

Communists: no Communist party

Member of: AfDB, CCC, Commonwealth, FAO, G-77, GATT, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, INTERPOL, ITO, NAM, OAU, SADCC, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO

Diplomatic representation: Counselor (Political Affairs), Head of Chancery, Charge d'Affaires ad interim Jonathan WUTAWUNASHE; Chancery at 2852 McGill Terrace NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 332-7100; US--Ambassador James Wilson RAWLINGS; Embassy at 172 Rhodes Avenue, Harare (mailing address is P. O. Box 3340, Harare); telephone �263� (14) 794-521

Flag: seven equal horizontal bands of green, yellow, red, black, red, yellow, and green with a white equilateral triangle edged in black based on the hoist side; a yellow Zimbabwe bird is superimposed on a red five-pointed star in the center of the triangle

NOTE: The information regarding Zimbabwe on this page is re-published from the 1989 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Zimbabwe Government 1989 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Zimbabwe Government 1989 should be addressed to the CIA.