Monday, October 24, 2005

The new Zimbabwe currency will be called …

Zimbabwe's central bank governor Gideon Gono said on state radio last Thursday the currency would be replaced "at a date to be announced".

He did not specify whether it would be replaced by an entirely new monetary unit, but given the Zimbabwe dollar's link to the white regime of pre-liberation Zimbabwe, where it began life as the Rhodesian dollar, it is likely the currency will be rebranded and given a new, ethnic identity.

If you link the above paragraph with the one below, the temptation to make a joke (in bad taste) is almost unbearable.

The Zimbabwe dollar is unlikely to be missed, suffering a disastrous decline against other currencies as it bore the brunt of President Robert Mugabe's
economic reform. Inflation is running at 360per cent a year, although it has been as high as 600per cent.
This has led to such iniquities as a roll of toilet paper that costs $Z3000, but because it is not always available at any price
, Zimbabweans have occasionally found it economical to use the $10 note instead.

Let’s leave it at that.

, ,

No comments: