Is it all about Currency reforms or there is more to it ?
*Is it all about Currency reforms or there is more to it ?*
By Hosia Mviringi
21 October 2018.
Lets look at our problems holistically.My view is that or nation has never had any Economic Crisis.But we have focused on the wrong target and thus our solutions may never work.We have suffered a Foreign Policy crisis for over two decades now, but our biggest Crisis has been lack of CONFIDENCE.
We have a sound economy with a resilient infrastructure and an intelligent human capital base.Those to me are the most important ingredients to a functional economy.There are some countries in the region and internationally with worse economies than ours but still enjoy a degree of stability.
Take for example what could be better in a Zambian or Mozambican economies that makes these countries more stable and habitable than Zimbabwe ?
We still have clean streets here, beatiful buildings and intelligent and hardworking citizenry, a peaceful environment for 38years , yet we rank as having the most distressed citizens continent wide.
Our problem , to me boils down to our international relations.We have thrived on politics of acrimony and isolation for too long.Our previous leadership was careless on employing a strategy of blaming the international community for our problems.We should for once as a nation embrace a culture of introspection and taking ownership and responsibility to our mistakes and shortcomings.
We need to work on our foreign/international relations as much as we should work on our attitude as a nation towards internationally shared principles and responsibilities.
The internatiomal community had adopted an attitude against us where absolutely nobody seemed to care anymore what happens to us ,yet we are a member of the family.
Here is a principle which as Zimbabweans have ignored for a long time.Nobody can afford to live for themselves.
Robert Mugabe unfortunately blindly fell into this self delluding trap of thinking that because we are a resource rich nation we could be self sufficient.
Nothing could be further from the truth than that.
America is a 15trillion economy ,yet it needs China, Russia ,North Korea and even Zimbabwe as its trading partners.How can Zimbabwe, a 3billion dollar economy assume self sufficiecy ? It defeats logic.
Here is my conclusion from the foregoing.Zimbabwe's problem is not of a Dollar/Bond /Rand or any other currency.The best currency we should be investing in right now with our lives is international CONFIDENCE.
Forget about POSA or AIPPA.
We need to rebuild the trust that saw international friendly nations help Smith bust sanctions.Smith's pound curesncy was also a bond currency as it was bonded/fixed against the British Pound but it survived its lifetime as the strongest currency in Africa, yet they were under sanctions.
What made a difference during the inclusive government between 2008-9 were not any visible change in economic fundamentals nor were they currency reforms, but it was the currency of trust , confidence and hopefulness.The citizens could spend the little foreign currency they had stocked up knowing that the subsisting government had secured the confidence of the international community and thus guaranteeing stability.
The diaspora could bring in money formally and directly to Zimbabwe as opposed to sending it through South Africa from where it would be conveyed home by o Malayitsha.
It is a difficult feat to achieve overnight but I think Local and International re-engagement is a pre-requisite before Zimbabwe can dream of stability let alone growth.
We need to engage locally.That is we need some degree of convergence as a nation through our political players and the business community.Thats the starting point and from there it becomes easy to engage foreigners from a united front.
They say a divided house cannot stand and this remains true for nations.Noone can engage a nation that is currently at war against itself.We need internal healing to spur the confidence of our citzens so that we can move forward.
This is a call to our leaders to make serious considerations as far as local , regional and international re-engagement is concerned.
I once said that a Currency is just but a mirror through which a nation can see itself.It is a true reflection of what we as a people have become.
A battered and discredited Currency to me represents a wretched nation.A nation which cant be trusted.A natiin which can gead any direction depending on the flow of wind on a particular day.
It tepresents a CORRUPT nation.
To me corruption diminishes the most important Currency we need as a nation , CONFIDENCE.
Thats how important a local currency is to tje being of a nation.
Meanwhile on the other hand a Stable and Tradeable Currency could mean exactly tje opposite of what I have just alluded to above.It could mean a trusted leadership , a Consistent national direction , a people proud to be who they are.It could mean a stable value of Investment , which is what every investor looks for in an economy.
It could mean a coherent national Vision etc.
Resultantly I would advice that we spend little effort on Currency reforms but put more effort and emphasis on addressing the fundamental underlying causes of these currency distortions , and the rest will gall into place.
Credibility , confidence , trust and hopefulness are the major incredients that sustain a currency in any colour or shape.
By Hosia Mviringi
21 October 2018.
Lets look at our problems holistically.My view is that or nation has never had any Economic Crisis.But we have focused on the wrong target and thus our solutions may never work.We have suffered a Foreign Policy crisis for over two decades now, but our biggest Crisis has been lack of CONFIDENCE.
We have a sound economy with a resilient infrastructure and an intelligent human capital base.Those to me are the most important ingredients to a functional economy.There are some countries in the region and internationally with worse economies than ours but still enjoy a degree of stability.
Take for example what could be better in a Zambian or Mozambican economies that makes these countries more stable and habitable than Zimbabwe ?
We still have clean streets here, beatiful buildings and intelligent and hardworking citizenry, a peaceful environment for 38years , yet we rank as having the most distressed citizens continent wide.
Our problem , to me boils down to our international relations.We have thrived on politics of acrimony and isolation for too long.Our previous leadership was careless on employing a strategy of blaming the international community for our problems.We should for once as a nation embrace a culture of introspection and taking ownership and responsibility to our mistakes and shortcomings.
We need to work on our foreign/international relations as much as we should work on our attitude as a nation towards internationally shared principles and responsibilities.
The internatiomal community had adopted an attitude against us where absolutely nobody seemed to care anymore what happens to us ,yet we are a member of the family.
Here is a principle which as Zimbabweans have ignored for a long time.Nobody can afford to live for themselves.
Robert Mugabe unfortunately blindly fell into this self delluding trap of thinking that because we are a resource rich nation we could be self sufficient.
Nothing could be further from the truth than that.
America is a 15trillion economy ,yet it needs China, Russia ,North Korea and even Zimbabwe as its trading partners.How can Zimbabwe, a 3billion dollar economy assume self sufficiecy ? It defeats logic.
Here is my conclusion from the foregoing.Zimbabwe's problem is not of a Dollar/Bond /Rand or any other currency.The best currency we should be investing in right now with our lives is international CONFIDENCE.
Forget about POSA or AIPPA.
We need to rebuild the trust that saw international friendly nations help Smith bust sanctions.Smith's pound curesncy was also a bond currency as it was bonded/fixed against the British Pound but it survived its lifetime as the strongest currency in Africa, yet they were under sanctions.
What made a difference during the inclusive government between 2008-9 were not any visible change in economic fundamentals nor were they currency reforms, but it was the currency of trust , confidence and hopefulness.The citizens could spend the little foreign currency they had stocked up knowing that the subsisting government had secured the confidence of the international community and thus guaranteeing stability.
The diaspora could bring in money formally and directly to Zimbabwe as opposed to sending it through South Africa from where it would be conveyed home by o Malayitsha.
It is a difficult feat to achieve overnight but I think Local and International re-engagement is a pre-requisite before Zimbabwe can dream of stability let alone growth.
We need to engage locally.That is we need some degree of convergence as a nation through our political players and the business community.Thats the starting point and from there it becomes easy to engage foreigners from a united front.
They say a divided house cannot stand and this remains true for nations.Noone can engage a nation that is currently at war against itself.We need internal healing to spur the confidence of our citzens so that we can move forward.
This is a call to our leaders to make serious considerations as far as local , regional and international re-engagement is concerned.
I once said that a Currency is just but a mirror through which a nation can see itself.It is a true reflection of what we as a people have become.
A battered and discredited Currency to me represents a wretched nation.A nation which cant be trusted.A natiin which can gead any direction depending on the flow of wind on a particular day.
It tepresents a CORRUPT nation.
To me corruption diminishes the most important Currency we need as a nation , CONFIDENCE.
Thats how important a local currency is to tje being of a nation.
Meanwhile on the other hand a Stable and Tradeable Currency could mean exactly tje opposite of what I have just alluded to above.It could mean a trusted leadership , a Consistent national direction , a people proud to be who they are.It could mean a stable value of Investment , which is what every investor looks for in an economy.
It could mean a coherent national Vision etc.
Resultantly I would advice that we spend little effort on Currency reforms but put more effort and emphasis on addressing the fundamental underlying causes of these currency distortions , and the rest will gall into place.
Credibility , confidence , trust and hopefulness are the major incredients that sustain a currency in any colour or shape.
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