The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has revealed that starting on the 15th of this month, gold coins of lower denominations of a tenth, a quarter, and a half will be on the market.
Speaking during the State of the Mining Industry Report breakfast held in the capital today, the central bank governor Dr. John Mangudya said the coins will be taken to banks by this Friday.
“We are going to be taking them to the banks on Friday and the public can start to buy them on Tuesday so we are leaving no one and no place behind. The bigger denominations were for the elites and therefore we are bringing smaller denominations.
“Today again we have been told that more money can go to the mining sector, so we are a listening Central Bank that is very consistent in terms of its policies,” he said.
He added that the Central bank is happy with the contribution of the mining sector to the growth of the economy.
“In terms of our projections for gold, 29.5 tonnes have been acieved by the end of October. We had a projection of 35 tonnes and I think it is achievable. This excludes the gold in the PGMs. The Reserve Bank has also taken a step forward to ensure that SI 189 of 2022, which is basically the implementation of the policy concerning the retaining of gold in kind , so we are going to ensure that the four products that are specified in that SI 189 we take them as reserves, which are gold , diamonds, lithium , platinum and palladium to make them five. These are going to be the nucleus for the reserves.
“We are happy about the positive overall prospect for the mining sector. The mining sector continues to play a pivotal role in this economy.
Reaction to the coins has been mixed with some saying they were good for companies wanting to maintain the value of their money, but others say the majority of Zimbabwean workers will still not be able to afford them.
