The Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA) has issued a directive limiting Zimbabwe dollar card payments by its clients to one account as the local currency continues to depreciate.
ZINWA reportedly issued the directive last year through an email to its branches, a move that has been interpreted as an indirect push for dollarisation.
NewsDay reported a source as saying most payments to ZINWA were being made in local currency with little to no transactions being made in foreign currency. Said the source:
We received an email from the Headquarters instructing us to only allow one card thus either Swipe or Ecocash to make payment for a single account.
We were not given any explanation as to why the HQ (headquarters) had enforced such a directive, but I suspect it had everything to do with money collection.
Most payments were being made in local currency with little to no transactions being made in USD due to disparities between the interbank rate and the black market rate.
We are against the directive. It’s creating unnecessary paperwork for us, yet making it difficult for locals to pay their bills.
ZINWA corporate communications and marketing manager Marjorie Munyonga confirmed to NewsDay that a directive had been issued, but added:
The Authority did not, at any time, bar clients from making payments using their bank cards, but instead restricted the usage of bank cards to one account in compliance and observance of the National Payments Systems Act, which prohibits third-party payments.
In that regard, ZINWA only barred clients from using multiple bank cards to pay for one account and from using one card to make payments for multiple accounts.
In instances where genuine cause existed, such as when a client owns more than one account or where tenants took turns to pay their water bill, ZINWA staff were empowered to exercise discretion under the auspices of the Know Your Customer principle, which is also permissible under the Act.
Even in the face of the directive, clients could still make payments in the currency of their choice and have their bills denominated in the local currency.
Clients remain able to make payments using mobile platforms such as OneMoney and Ecocash in addition to the use of bank cards and other payment platforms.
In 2023, the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT) indicated that 78% of local transactions were being done in foreign currency.
On 27 October 2023, the Government enacted Statutory Instrument 218 of 2023 which extended the duration of the multicurrency regime from 2025 to 2030.
The gap between the official and parallel exchange rates continues to widen.
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