Natalie Nyathi,
Business Reporter
Zimbabwe’s local currency continues to lose it’s value everyday.
The effects of the lose of strength by the Zimbabwe dollar has proved to be a serious negation to the ordinary man on the street.
At the introduction of the ‘new’ local currency, Minister of Finance and International Trade, had the ZWL$5 note as his highest denomination. There was the two dollar note working hand in hand with the paper money.
At one time the United States dollar was said to be no longer local tender. This ensued the flight of strength off the introduced new currency.
Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube was so confident with measures that he put in place to strengthen the local currency after the change of name from RTGS dollars to ZWL dollars.
The measures did not yield any positive results as the use of the coins began to be shunned on the streets.
Inflation began to gnaw at the local currency. Soon it became a hustle to trade, a customer had to carry hordes of ZWL$2 notes. The ZWL$5 introduced after an outcry from the business community.
The sooner the five dollar note hit the streets the coins lost its strength.
The situation was exacerbated by the influx of illegal money traders who came to offload the RTGS$ currency which flooded bank accounts.
Osiphatheleni, as the illegal money traders are. known, would get the hard cash in exchange of swiping for customers at supermarkets, schools, departmental stores, fast food outlets and everywhere else were local electronic money transfers was a common feature.
Inflation continued to gnaw at the local dollar and soon the ZWL$10 note became the highest denomination.
It was a far gone conclusion that the five dollar note would be rejected by traders.
The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe through the Ministry of Finance continued to introduce bigger currency denominations, but still inflation persisted.
Osiphatheleni established their own street rate that was so favored by the restive public. Soon, foreign currency was fetching larger amounts of the local dollars and the parallel market thrived while higher denominations were introduced.
At the writing of this story, the highest denomination of the local currency is the ZWL$100. Unfortunately, the ZWL$20 is no longer acceptable by vendors and commuter omnibus operators.
Illegal commuter omnibus operators are refusing to accept the ZWL$20.
The ZWL$20 was released into circulation in June 2020 when the ZWL$10 became a struggle to transact with.
Renowned shops such as TM PicknPay, OK Zimbabwe, Choppies, Sai Mart and the City Council, are still accepting the ZWL$20 notes as well as the lower denominations.
One vendor told Zim GBC News that he does accept the large denominated notes except for ZWL$20 because a lot of people are no longer trading in. the lower notes. He narrated that where he orders his wares for resale no longer accept f the ZWL$20 notes from customers. As such he turns away customers who would want to purchase using the lower note.
The US dollar has slowly became the official trading currency yet again in Zimbabwe as the local currency tumbles everyday.
“Just last week, l boarded a Kombi to Cowdray Park, as l was busy counting the wad of ZWL$20 notes so as to pay the bus fare, l was plainly told
“Mama ungazihluphi ngokubala amabond akho lawo ngoba thina laa asithathi, asikho ebhasini phela lapha, (we don’t take those notes in this car, this is not a Zupco bus), fortunately enough l had a twenty rand note in my purse which l was compelled to use it to pay”, said Sihle Moyo.
One resident on being asked why Kombi drivers are not taking the ZWL$20 notes stated that the drivers bemaoned the fact that they cannot purchase fuel using the local currency and also the fact that the passengers themselves no longer want the money as it is time consuming to count ZWL$20 notes paid by the whole Kombi of about 18 passengers.
A commuter omnibus fare is pegged at US$1 which is equated to between ZWL$800 and ZWL$1000. This makes it 40 or 50 twenty Zimbabwe dollar notes.
The monetary policy states that it is a criminal offense to reject local currency.
This publication approached the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe in Bulawayo to get their comment on this issue of citizens rejecting ZWL$20 banknotes, this reporters was told to send an email with questions in writing, at the time of publication the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe had still not responded to questions sent to them.
In the meantime the common person on the street is oblivious of the fact that the ZWL$20 note and its lower friends are still legal tender in the country.