Is there any hope left for telecoms in Zimbabwe without intervention from outside?

Yes, a trickle of hope.

It is no secret that the Zimbabwean Government has recently loosened exchange controls in Zimbabwe, for one to allow service providers to charge for their services in US dollar. It is therefore no surprise that the telecoms operators in Zimbabwe are hoping, that by charging US dollars for their services, they will be able to build up enough reserves to import much needed network equipment, et cetera.

In other words, Zimbabwean telecoms providers’ only hope of surviving the current economic and political turmoil in Zimbabwe without outside interference (foreign takeovers, et cetera), are to build up enough foreign currency reserves, to import the equipment and all else needed to grow and maintain their networks.

ADSL South Africa (Broadband South Africa) fears that the rebuilding of Zimbabwe, besides the 2010 Soccer World Cup in SA, is going to provide most of the fuel needed to give economic growth in the SADEC region (South Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi, Tanzania, Mozambique, Madagascar, Swaziland, Angola) a boost in the coming months and years.