The Sunday News
Gabriel Masvora
IN 2009, Zimbabwe officially introduced the use of multiple currencies when it set aside its local dollar which had become worthless after finally succumbing to years of battering from inflation.
This was a bold move which resulted in the stabilisation of prices of most goods and the economy in general.
The key pronouncement at the time was that the country had adopted the use of MULTI-CURRENCIES.
This is simple and self-explanatory. It means as a country we had to use a cocktail of foreign currencies as legal tender.
Although we had a weak foreign currency trading platform, both business and individuals keenly followed the international exchange rates prevailing and applied them during transactions.
Over the years, at no time did the Government announce that it has changed its stance on the issue of multi-currency system.
At no time did the Government officially announce that Zimbabwe was now exclusively using the dollar and ditching all the other currencies.
Although the dollar somehow managed to become the dominant currency in the country, officially we are still a country using multi-currencies.
When the dollar was weak against some regional currencies such as the rand, local businesses were happy to accept the rand and the pula as legal tender. They never complained.
Over the past few months, the dollar has firmed against most major regional currencies and the local business community now want to complicate things and is refusing to accept the rand, especially the coins.
This is hypocrisy at the highest level. It becomes worrying when huge retailers like OK Zimbabwe are among those at the forefront of this business decision.
It does not make any sense when such shops like OK Zimbabwe go on to refuse the rand when more than 50 percent of the products they are selling are imported from South Africa.
South Africa is Zimbabwe’s biggest trading partner. According to ZimStats, South Africa remains Zimbabwe’s largest trading partner with total trade between the two countries for March 2015 valued at $332,7 million.
South African imports were valued at $114,3 million while exports to Zimbabwe were at $218 million.
This has always been the trend. In fact at one time almost 90 percent of the goods in local shops were coming from South Africa.
Such figures are a clear indication that the South African currency is integral in most of these business transactions.
The figures might be tabled in US dollars but the fact is that all the figures which indicate imports are just an equivalent to the rand value.
Even the exports, some South African companies and businesses are paying in rand for goods imported from Zimbabwe that is why some local companies are even going to the extent of opening rand denominated accounts.
These figures converted to rand will show the magnitude of trade which is going on between Zimbabwe and South Africa.
That is why partly Beitbridge is the busiest port of entry in the region.
To be frank we live mostly on South African goods which we buy using the rand.
Right now there are more buses which are plying the Harare to Johannesburg and Bulawayo to Johannesburg route more than buses which ply the Harare-Bulawayo route.
Many Zimbabweans are crossing into South Africa to buy goods. They are also taking their goods for resale in the neighbouring country. All these businesses are transacted using the rand.
There are an estimated one million Zimbabweans who are also living in South Africa.
Every month these diasporans send thousands of rand back home to support their families.
They also anticipate to buy goods either as local investment or for use back where they are based and they expect to do all these transactions using the rand.
Most of the money whether sent officially or unofficially get into the country in rand denominations. This is also true for those working in Botswana or even in the United Kingdom.
Given such a clear scenario which does not even need an economist to explain, how does a whole management of a big company, a listed concern for that matter sit down and just say let us stop accepting the rand in our shops.
While saying that, such management will be probably drinking some South African coffee and sitting on huge stock piles of South African goods.
What does that say about such a management or such a business? Some business concerns in the country are so used to be reminded on how to do proper business every time. They are proving that if left to do business in a non-Government interference environment, they will flout the country’s rules at will.
Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa will soon present his national budget before the end of the year.
Maybe Minister Chinamasa in his foreword to the budget, must remind the nation that we are still using the multi-currency system in Zimbabwe.
He should remind them that most of the currencies especially the rand is still very much accepted and legal tender.
Since the business community, by refusing the rand is inviting the Government to act, Minister Chinamasa and his colleagues who are in charge of ensuring that the country’s laws are followed must ensure that those who are not acting according to book are made to account.
They must also reassure people that they have the right to approach relevant institutions if they encounter retailers and other businesses who are refusing to accept other foreign currencies.
After all we are about to see some of our brothers and sisters from across the Limpopo coming in for the December holidays and we are doing a disservice to them when we start saying we are no longer accepting the rand or the pula. What will motivate them to visit relatives here or even send them money.
Businesses, if they do not want to use the other currencies, know that they can approach banks and exchange the money to their preferred currencies. They cannot expect individuals — some with amounts as low as R5 to do that.
What is surprising is that apart from their shelves and cabinets being filled with goods from South Africa, no one has forced them to accept the rand at reduced rates. A rand in coin or note still carries the same value so why refuse the money.
In all fairness they have been benefiting from the fluctuating rates by estimating rates to their advantage.
Please let us remind our business community that we are still using multi-currencies in Zimbabwe.
