Claim: Zimbabwe declares the President’s birthday an annual public holiday
Source: News reports, social media
Verdict: Misleading
Researched by Alfa Shaban
Multiple news portals reported the promulgation of a new public holiday in Zimbabwe, tying the official declaration of September 15 as the latest public holiday to President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s birthday.
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The headline from Nigeria’s Premium Times portal read: “Zimbabwe declares president’s birthday an annual public holiday,” with Kenya’s Standard Newspaper and South Africa’s News24 carrying headlines that read: “Zimbabwe names President Mnangagwa’s birthday public holiday” and “Outcry as Zimbabwean President Mnangagwa declares his birthday a public holiday.”
On social media, multiple news platforms and users shared articles and flyers of the reported claim (here, here, here). Zimbabwe’s main opposition leader, Nelson Chamisa, posted on X and said,
“#JustImagine if every president had made his own birthday a public holiday, America would be celebrating presidents instead of being productive and fulfilling the national goals. In Zimbabwe, we need a new direction!”
Platform users on Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, X and WhatsApp shared posts with the claim (here, here, here), drawing humorous and critical reactions and comments.
FactSpace West Africa decided to fact-check the claim because of its virality and the headlines most news portals used in their reportage.
Fact-check
FactSpace West Africa reviewed the Statutory Instrument 148 of 2026 [CAP. 10:12] dated September 9, 2026 and titled: Public Holidays and Prohibition of Business (Declaration of Public Holiday) Notice, 2026.
The publication referred to the President’s powers to invoke holidays, adding: “It is hereby declared that the 15th of September every year henceforth, shall be a public holiday to be known as Munhumutapa Day.”
We asked a fellow fact-checker with ZimFact, Cris Chinaka, about the viral reports; he responded: “The government statute which set September 15 as a public holiday to mark Munhumutapa Day made no reference to Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s birthday.” He added, “But of course the date is curiously coinciding with Mnangagwa’s birthday, fueling a political debate on the issue.”
The new holiday is officially tied to Zimbabwe’s history and the Munhumutapa Empire, which fell between the 12th and 15th centuries. It is regarded as one of Africa’s great civilisations and is the source of what is known as “Great Zimbabwe”.
A history of presidential birthdays as public holidays
This is the second time a Zimbabwean President’s birthday is being marked as a public holiday. Chinaka pointed to how the country’s first President Robert Mugabe’s birthday (February 21) was also made an annual public holiday in 2017, shortly after Mugabe was forced to resign under pressure from the military.
Chinaka said: “The media coverage is justified on account of the coincidence, which falls in line with Zimbabwe’s previous experience with former President Robert Mugabe. The birthday of the southern African state’s first independence leader, February 21, was declared a national holiday during his tenure under the flag of “21st February Movement” for youth. It was later renamed “National Youth Day” and remains a public holiday today.”
Verdict
While September 15 is President Mnangagwa’s birthday, it only coincides with the commemoration of Munhumutapa Day; therefore, the claim that the President declared his birthday a public holiday is misleading.
