Government working on stabilising ZiG

Farirai Machivenyika

Senior Reporter

Government is working on measures to stabilise the local currency through increasing its demand by the transacting public, Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi told Senate during question time on Thursday.

Minister Ziyambi said the value of the ZiG is being affected by a lack of confidence but added that Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion Minister, Professor Mthuli Ncube will address the issue in the 2025 budget that is expected to be presented on November 28.

“While I will not delve into specific measures that will be addressed by the Minister of Finance, but the major issue affecting the value of our currency is lack of confidence. Government is working on measures to address the issue,” he said.

Minister Ziyambi said the country has close to US$500 million in reserves and over ZiG10 billion in circulation.

“The reserves are enough to support the currency at rates below what is being charged on the parallel market,” he said.

The RBZ introduced the ZiG in April as a structured currency backed by the US dollar, gold reserves and other precious minerals.

At its introduction, ZiG traded at a rate of around ZiG13 to US$1 before the RBZ adjusted the exchange rate to around ZiG24,5 to US$1 last month after its value fell due to speculation.