Online Reporter
Tapiwanashe Mangwiro
THE National Competitive Commission of Zimbabwe (NCCZ) says the repealing of Statutory Instrument (SI) 81A of 2024 has been a decisive market-oriented shift that is already propelling confidence in the ZiG/USD exchange rate.
In a recent report, the Commission stated, “Through removing rigid pricing constraints and allowing businesses to set prices in line with real-time market conditions, the repealing of SI 81A reinvigorates private sector sentiment and signals regulatory stability to both domestic and international investors.”
The regulatory requirement compelled sellers to peg goods and services to the average interbank exchange rate, with authorities penalising operators for any deviation, which fuelled parallel market activity.
Dr Farai Hove, a senior economist at the Midlands Policy Institute, says the shift is what the country’s foreign-exchange arena needed.
“This pivot away from enforced price pegging sends a clear message that the authorities are prepared to trust market forces,” he explained.
“It should reduce the gap between official and parallel rates, which undermines investment and erodes confidence.”
Since SI 34 came into effect on April 15, interbank market turnover has climbed by roughly 35 percent, according to local banking sources, while the premium charged in the parallel market has shrunk from around 40 percent at the start of April to about 18 percent this week.
The NCCZ insists that the repealing of SI 81A must be reinforced with complementary reforms to anchor market confidence.
“SI 34 of 2025 should be accompanied by reforms that strengthen exchange rate transparency, foreign exchange market depth, and enforcement of fair-trading practices,” the Commission said, arguing that, “Visible daily publication of interbank and parallel rates, coupled with volume data, will deter speculative spreads and guide more informed pricing decisions.”
