South Africa’s finance minister Tito Mboweni said on Wednesday that Zimbabwe should look at introducing a new currency to solve its economic and financial challenges.
Mboweni also called for presidents to intervene in ending sanctions in Zimbabwe. Mboweni said South African government representatives, including National Treasury director-general and the Reserve Bank governor, had met with their Zimbabwean counterparts on December 26 in Johannesburg. He said they had a conversation about the status of the Zimbabwean economy, the finance and banking systems, the attempts to reignite the economic health of Zimbabwe, adding that they reaffirmed their mutual commitment to working together to assist Zimbabwe. Said Mboweni:
I think the idea of using a new currency in Zimbabwe is a good one. I think our colleagues there are on a good wicket when it comes to that space. We are working together very well but at the end of the day it is Zimbabweans who need to fix their country. But something that is beyond my powers, presidents will have to work together to ensure that whatever remaining sanctions in Zimbabwe are removed. Those sanctions are causing big problems. Because if you want to go and do anything that involves the US dollar and you are under sanctions, political leadership hopefully will really do something to remove the sanctions. It is key and central to the revival of the Zimbabwean economy.
More: IOL