Chronicle Editor
Sukulwenkosi Dube-Matutu, [email protected]
VICE President Kembo Mohadi has said the collective effort in embracing ZiG will contribute to the smooth transition towards a more stable economic environment and implored the Zanu-PF leadership to play an active role in educating communities about the new currency.
Backed mainly by gold and foreign currency reserves, ZiG is expected to curtail inflation and restore long-term macro-economic stability, with the multi-currency regime set to stay in place until at least 2030.
Speaking during a Zanu-PF Matabeleland South Provincial Co-ordinating Committee (PCC) meeting in Gwanda on Friday, VP Mohadi, who is also the ruling party’s Second Secretary, urged citizens to embrace ZiG, saying the strategic shift will help redefine Zimbabwe’s path towards self-sufficiency and stability.
During the meeting, a team from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) took the opportunity to educate PCC members on ZiG.“We have got a new currency called Zimbabwe Gold. The difference between this currency and other currencies that we have had in the past is that this one is backed by gold. This is a strong currency that will stand its ground and for this to happen we should believe in our currency as a country,” said VP Mohadi.
“Western countries have been coming into our country to buy our gold leaving us with notes, which have less value compared to our gold. They have since developed their countries using the wealth derived from our resources.
“This time, our money is backed by a valuable asset, which is gold and hence it will be difficult for it to lose value.”VP Mohadi said Zanu-PF party cadres should be at the forefront of educating communities about ZiG.He said through party structures, information can be cascaded down to remote parts of the country.
“The Zanu-PF party is supreme and it is present everywhere. As a party, we understand and support the Government’s development drive, which makes us the suitable people to spread the message,” said VP Mohadi.“Let’s go and tell the people through our party structures that we have a new currency and we have to support and embrace it as it will bring about the much-needed development.”
Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion Minister, Professor Mthuli Ncube, recently announced that as the Government continues to configure the Public Finance Management System (PFMS) to facilitate revenue collection and payment for goods and services in local currency, all ministries, departments, agencies and the private sector must accept and recognise ZiG as the official currency for all financial transactions and payment for all goods and services.
ZiG started circulating in the market last month with the successful rollout of lower denomination notes and coins ranging from ZiG1 to ZiG10.
RBZ Governor, Dr John Mushayavanhu, has said the release of higher denomination notes was set to follow soon.
The apex bank is undertaking an extensive countrywide public education awareness campaign, in partnership with the Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services to ensure citizens understand and embrace the new currency
This follows the successful launch of the structured currency on April 5, which has been overwhelmingly embraced by key economic stakeholders.Dr Mushayavanhu, with concurrence from economists, is convinced the introduction of ZiG would bring about the last stability in the economy and boost business operations while promoting savings in line with the recent Monetary Policy Statement.
Backed mainly by gold and other precious minerals and a basket of forex services, ZiG is a successor to the Zimbabwe dollar, which had suffered from volatility challenges, and its success is expected to anchor the de-dollarisation roadmap.
While the public has started trading using ZiG, especially in urban areas, there have been concerns that members of the public in remote areas and rural districts still lacked adequate information regarding the new currency.
This prompted the RBZ to partner with the Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services to conduct joint awareness campaigns on the currency, supported by other key stakeholders. — @DubeMatutu
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