Statutory Instrument Extending Multicurrency Regime To 2030 "A Dummy", Says Mugano
Economist Gift Mugano says the recent announcement by the Government to extend the multi-currency regime is not sincere.
On Friday, 27 October, the Government enacted Statutory Instrument 218 of 2023 which extended the duration of the multicurrency regime from 2025 to 2030.
However, posting on X, Mugano, who was fired from the ZimTrade Board by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Frederick Shava, last month, SI 218 of 2023 which extended the multi-currency system is “a dummy”. He said:
Is the SI 218 of 2023 which extended the use of the multi-currency regime to 2030 real or it’s a dummy sold to us? I think it’s a dummy.
… In my view, the extension is meant to give us the impression that the USD is here to stay and we calm down and then @MthuliNcube pulls out a shocker when we are not expecting right?
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Mugano cited remarks attributed to Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion Minister Mthuli Ncube where he explained the rationale behind the extension of the multi-currency dispensation.
Speaking at this year’s pre-budget seminar, held under the theme “Consolidating Economic Transformation”, at the new parliament building last month, Ncube said, as quoted by NewZimbabwe.com:
You saw the SI that we issued a few days ago, where we said because of that, we wanted an orderly situation in the market rather than disorder.
Disorder was beginning to emerge. What we saw in the banking sector. Banks were now refusing to lend money at all, some of them in USD, so that had become chaotic.
So we thought that let’s release some pressure from the market to restore order.
Minister Ncube also stated that despite extending the multi-currency regime by another 7 years, the Government has not abandoned plans for a mono-currency. He said:
We are headed for mono currency, let’s be clear about that, but we want order. So the extension to 2030 was to create order and calm in the market.
Economists estimate that 80% of the local economy is dollarised, with the gap between the official and exchange rates continuing to widen.
More: Pindula News
