Kenyan President, William Ruto, Backs New ZiG Currency

Kenyan President, William Ruto, who was on an official visit to Zimbabwe last week, said the introduction of Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG), will contribute greatly to the country’s economic revival.

Ruto was in Bulawayo to officially open the 64th edition of the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF). Speaking at the event on Saturday, 27 April, Ruto said:

Zimbabwe’s commitment to economic recovery and transformation was the government’s decision to introduce a new currency, the ZIG, which is backed by gold and other asset reserves.

This radical revitalisation of Zimbabwe’s monetary policy will contribute greatly to the country’s economic resurgence…

There is no doubt that these reserves represent tremendous wealth, and it is appropriate that they should be deployed to back the national currency.

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Zimbabwe introduced the structured currency on 05 April 2024, with the distribution of the notes and coins expected on Tuesday, April 30, 2024.

Meanwhile, Ruto, who was accompanied by his wife Rachel, said that since he stepped into Zimbabwe he noted “an unmistakable energy of a country going places”. He said:

One thing that has been difficult to ignore from the moment we stepped on Zimbabwean soil is the unmistakable energy of a country going places, a people facing forward and a nation entering a new chapter in its development history.

Upon observation and reflection, I have a good idea about the source of this infectious air of optimistic expectation that fills up every space in this great country.

Ruto also commended Zimbabweans’ resilience in the face of challenges, some of which were authored by outside forces. He said:

We all know that Zimbabwe has waged its share of struggles, faced its share of challenges and undergone a great deal of setbacks and pressures.

It has been inspiring to witness the resilience and fortitude of the Zimbabwean nation and the people, who, though not the authors of their country’s tribulations, refused to be victims of it, and did not give up, slow down or lament in despair.

Instead, they endured and forged on, with the confident patience of a people who have prevailed against formidable adversaries and won daunting battles time and again.

In 2020, then Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta granted a group of Shona people who migrated from Zimbabwe to Kenya between 1930 and 1950 citizenship.

The people who had been staying in Kenya as illegal immigrants reportedly settled in Nairobi first and started a church before they finally settled in Kinoo, Kiambu County

The Shona people together with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) lobbied the government of Kenya to recognize them as citizens because they intermarried and had been in the country for decades before Kenyatta granted their request.

More: Pindula News