Vice President Constantino Chiwenga on Wednesday, 24 April, warned currency speculators allegedly sabotaging the new Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG) currency that the long arm of the law will catch up with them.
Officially opening the international business conference at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF) in Bulawayo, Chiwenga urged both the public and private sectors as well as households to accept ZiG. He said (via NewsDay):
ZiG is there to stay forever. The new currency will, therefore, not be subject to exchange rate volatility or manipulation by speculators.
So, speculators somewhere [wherever you are] jumping around trying to play around in the supermarkets, we know [you]. Behave or you get shut down or we will lock you [up]. Two things.
The ZiG is expected to provide a lasting solution to inflation expectations, which is critical for sustained price and exchange rate stability in the economy.
Given these boundless benefits, I, therefore, call on the public, the private sector, including households, labour and businesses, civic society and the international community, to fully embrace and support the ZiG currency.
Chiwenga also said the government will put measures in place to curb the smuggling of gold out of the country. He said:
We are going to put measures, strict measures, that can see heads rolling. Every gramme must be accounted for in our gold.
We need our gold and because it is God-given. No one came with gold (to) Zimbabwe, but it’s in our soil.
If we don’t want to mine it, it will stay there, but no one should touch it. So, all our money we are talking about here, the Zimbabwe Gold, is going to be anchored firmly, by our gold and gold, we get it from all our resources.
Chiwenga asserted that the structured currency will enable long-term business planning and encourage savings and investments in the economy. He said:
The stability of the ZiG will boost investor confidence in the economy and lead to increased production and exports.
The economy will also experience an increase in domestic demand as people’s purchasing power gradually improves amid low and stable prices.
The government, through the central bank, will, however, continue to monitor interest rates to curtail speculative borrowing, to ensure optimal money supply and to keep inflation under control.
ZiG was launched on 05 April 2024 to replace the Zimbabwe dollar whose value had severely been eroded by inflation.
According to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, ZiG is backed by gold and foreign currency reserves as well as other precious minerals.
