GOVERNMENT has ordered that the public and private sectors should accommodate all currencies in the multi-currency basket and not only the United States dollar.
“In light of this, the ministry emphasises the urgency and importance of a swift transition and market adoption of the ZiG by all stakeholders,” Finance minister Mthuli Ncube said in a statement yesterday.
“We call upon all MDAs (ministries, departments and agencies) and the private sector including retailers and service providers to accept the ZiG in all financial transactions, including payment of salaries as well as for procurement. This collective effort will contribute to the smooth transition towards a more stable economic environment.
“Furthermore, unless there is specific legislation allowing charges or fees to be collected in USD only, all collections by government and the private sector shall be made in ZiG or any of the currencies in the multi-currency basket without insisting on a specific type of currency or indexing invoices to the USD.”
Last month, government launched the ZiG through a monetary policy statement which scrapped the Zimdollar after it had significantly depreciated over the past few months.
ZiG has, however, been met with hostility from Zimbabweans as many believe that its value will soon be decimated by the continued demand for the US dollar, now commonly used by locals as a store of value to protect savings from inflation.
