The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) has completed printing and minting the new Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG) banknotes and coins. This was said by Central Bank Governor John Mushayavanhu in an exclusive interview with The Sunday Mail.
He said the ZiG notes and coins were produced locally and are enough “to satisfy the market’s needs”. The ZiG notes and coins are set to be introduced into the market on 30 April.
Mushayavanhu also said the ZiG notes will be drip-fed into the market in denominations. They range from ZiG1 to ZiG200 and will be complemented by coins in the form of half ZiG and quarter ZiG. He said:
The new currency has already been introduced. It was introduced on April 5 when we announced the Monetary Policy Statement. On that day, we converted all our Zimbabwe dollar balances into ZiG.
So, if you go to your bank today, you will find that your balance has been converted to ZiG. The next stage is now to introduce the notes and coins.
These are the ones that are going to be introduced on April 30. The money has already been printed. It is there.
The launch of ZiG on 5 April resulted in the rejection of old Zimbabwe dollar notes, not only by businesses and transport services but by government agencies as well.
Zimbabweans are facing a novel challenge known as “triple spending”, where consumers spend three times more than they intend by buying items they don’t need because there is no change.
Mushayavanhu said the RBZ is working closely with the Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services to educate the public about the new currency. He said:
But before issuing it to the public, we have to make sure that we have undertaken an extensive education campaign so that people understand the features of the new currency.
We want to avoid a situation where some unscrupulous people can cheat people by giving them fake notes and coins. So, this process is ongoing.
The central bank chief said ZiG was a stable currency that has been gaining value progressively since its introduction as it is backed by gold and other precious metals.
He said the measures outlined in the Monetary Policy Statement aim to curb inflation. Given the strengthening exchange rate of the Zimbabwean dollar (ZiG) against the US dollar, it is expected that prices will decrease, rather than rise. Added Mushayavanhu:
Our fear is actually not inflation, but rather, deflation.
Inflation occurs when the prices of goods and services in an economy rise too much, too quickly, while Deflation occurs when there is a general decline in prices for goods and services. It is indicated by an inflation rate that falls below zero per cent.
The RBZ says it has in its reserves US$100 million in foreign currency and 2,5 tonnes of gold valued at US$185 million.
