(3 minutes read)
· While the number of employed persons increased by 543,000 to
14.7 million in the third quarter of 2020, the number of unemployed
persons increased by 2,2 million to 6,5 million compared to the 2nd
quarter of 2020
· That means the unemployment climbed by 7.5% between July and
September to reach 30.8%
· The country’s hyperinflation soared to a percentage beyond
the calculation of economists, some say more than 5 billion percent,
which forced the government to abandon the local currency in 2009
Zimbabwe’s economy is not generating adequate inflow of fresh dollar
notes badly needed for its largely dollarized local economy. A
combination of reasons led to this situation including
de-industrialization, low investment, low exports and high debt. This
was the finding of the consulting firm Robertson Economics headed by
Harare-based economist John Robertson.
Lack of faith of the local people in their own currency is the main
reason for the sustained dithering of the economy. Many shops reject
the local currency. A few may accept the currency with some
negotiations, indicating how weak the currency is. People say that the
Zimbabwean dollar is so low valued and needs a large quantity to buy
even trivial things like a loaf of bread or milk.
The US dollar has dominated transactions in Zimbabwe. The country’s
hyperinflation soared to a percentage beyond the calculation of
economists, some say more than 5 billion percent, which forced the
government to abandon the local currency in 2009. The alternative
currencies also could not stem the rot. For instance, in 2019, the
government re-introduced a Zimbabwe currency and banned foreign
currencies for local transactions, leading to heightened black market
for the US dollar. Soon the local currency was devalued. As if to add
oil to the fire, in March this year, the government removed the
dollar ban. The government says the practice is illegal and the police
sometimes raid the currency traders, seizing their precious dollar
notes and issuing fines.
