Zimbabwe to reintroduce local currency in 12 months, says finance minister

Zimbabwean Finance and Economic Development Minister Mthuli Ncube said that the country will have its own currency within 12 months, state media Herald newspaper reported Saturday. Addressing delegates at “Road to Davos” meeting in Harare Friday, Ncube said adopting the U.S. dollar or the South African rand would not solve the country’s macro-economic problems. Asked to give a timeline on when local currency would be reintroduced, Ncube said it would be done “in less than 12 months.” He said separating the parity between Real Time Gross Settlement accounts (RTGS) and foreign currency accounts (FCA) was the beginning of currency reforms which are necessary for pushing the country’s economy in the right direction. “Our job is to introduce a currency that will be stable and less volatile. Dealing with the fiscal side is the first order to move towards a stable currency,” Ncube said. Zimbabwe adopted the use of multi-currencies in 2009 after its local currency had been rendered worthless by hyperinflation. To relieve cash shortages, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe introduced the bond note in late 2016. Initially pegged at 1:1 against the U.S. dollar when it was introduced, the bond note, however, has gradually lost value against the real currency and is now trading at about one-third the value of the U.S. dollar. Xinhua

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Zimbabwe to reintroduce local currency in 12 months, says finance minister