Retailers and service providers have defied a government directive, Statutory Instrument (SI) 212 of 2019 Exchange Control (Exclusive Use of Zimbabwe dollar for Domestic Transactions), as they continue to accept payments in US dollars.
President of the Confederation of Zimbabwe Retailers (CZR) Denford Mutashu conceded that those found on the wrong side of the law should be arrested. He said:
If anyone is breaking the law, the law enforcement agencies of the country should move in. However, it is a market that increasingly is self-dollarising in order to continue lubricating itself as seventy per cent of raw materials are imported.
Some retailers tend to charge “reasonable” prices in US dollars but the same product costs far much more when priced in RTGS dollars.
For instance, a survey carried out by The Herald revealed that one Harare restaurant charges US$1 for a portion of sadza and quarter chicken but demands RTGS$27 for the same.