Until recently, Zimbabwe had experienced steady economic growth. GDP at 1990 constant price during 1996–1998 was 38 percent higher than that during 1985–1987. Due to variable weather conditions, agricultural production fluctuated year by year but its contribution to GDP remained around 17 percent for 1985–1998. In other word, agriculture has grown at a rate similar to that of the national economy.

Zimbabwe is one of the major tobacco exporters in the world. In 1996–1998, average annual exports of tobacco were 127 000 tonnes, of which Virginia accounted for more than 95 percent. Total exports of tobacco increased by 40 percent between 1981–1983 and 1996–1998. The average export revenue during the same period was US$7 875 million, and tobacco has been the largest single export crop in recent decades. Although the share of tobacco in total agricultural exports has declined from its peak of 78 percent in 1992, it still accounted for more than 55 percent of total agricultural exports during 1996–1998.
 Among other export crops, cotton and maize experienced significant growth in export revenue. Export earnings from cotton increased nearly 22-fold between 1981–1983 and 1996–1998, while maize increased by nearly 16 times during the same period, and sugar also saw its share in revenue increase sharply. Increases in both planting areas and yields have contributed to a significant increase in output of tobacco over the past decades.
Comparing the three-year average 1980–82 with 1998–2000, total output increased by 137 percent, from 95 817 tonnes to 226 970 tonnes. During the same period, planting areas increased from 50 150 ha to 92 685 ha, a rise of 85 percent, while yield increased by about 29 percent, from 1 900 kg/ha to 2 510 kg/ha