DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION IN ZIMBABWE'S PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION: OPPORTUNITIES, CHALLENGES, AND ETHICAL IMPLICATIONS OF E-GOVERNANCE

Zimbabwe's bold commitment to digital evolution in public administration marks a game-changing moment for e-governance, despite operating in a resource-poor context. This is a mixed methods study of the opportunities, challenges and ethical implications of Zimbabwe's initiatives (e.g. ZimConnect) combining quantitative data about governance and access to digital technologies with qualitative, interviews and document analysis of both government reports and media. The findings highlight demonstrable improvements in service delivery in public administration, but these are restrained by long-standing urban-rural digital divides and infrastructure issues. The ethical ramifications of data use and potential misuse, especially in a politically sensitive context, raise questions about protocols and frameworks. The innovative recommendations (e.g. solar-powered digital hubs, oversight through blockchain and a lab for digital model that is culturally reflexive) suggest a viable and equitable way of delivering governance. Will Zimbabwe be able to mobilize the initiative to leverage its mobile-led characteristics to rethink the public administration? This study calls for scholars and practitioners to think critically and creatively about possible avenues in building a new kind of ethical e-governance to support public administration, establishing Zimbabwe as a lighthouse for future transformed digital development in the Global South.