Fisher
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Click link for photo of bank notes.
Fair use
http://www.sokwanele.com/thisiszimbabwe/archives/964
A 500mln bearer cheque (aka ‘bank note’) added to Gono’s portfolio of success
A new so-called bank note - which is actually just another of Gideon Gono’s funny-money bearer-cheques (printed with expiry dates) - has hit the streets. It has not yet been added to our display of Gideon Gono’s portfolio of past and current cheques, but I’m sure our readers will understand that it is almost as hard to keep up with him and his printing as it is to keep up with inflation!
The photograph certainly makes one think, doesn’t it?!
It’s hard to believe that the smallest note in this pile - $5 - was issued on 1st August 2006 (you can just make out the date if you enlarge the image).
1st August 2006 is a very important date: this marked the beginning of Gono’s Operation Sunrise where he knocked three zeros off our currency.
Operation Sunrise was accompanied by a big Reserve Bank Of Zimbabwe advertising campaign as well, heralding the new future of three less zeros which was supposedly about restoring value. Here is one advert to remind you (click on it to enlarge and you can see the ‘restore value’ slogan in the top right).
There are three things to point out here: first, the $5 note in our picture had actually been worth $5,000 in July 2006. Value was not restored to the currency, all that happened was three zeros were dropped. The advertising campaign set out to con the public that the real value of our money had somehow returned miraculously overnight; that Gideon Gono was a successful Reserve Bank Governor who had helped to heal the economy.
So the REAL figure associated with the new $500,000,000 cheque issued today is in fact $500,000,000,000.
Your eyes are not deceiving you - eleven zeros - $500,000,000,000.
The second thing to note is the price of bread. A new $500,000,000 cheque will buy two loaves of bread; but according to the government’s own campaign, one loaf cost a mere $85 in August 2006.
Translate that to the proper terms with all the zeros in place: a loaf that cost $85,000 in 2006, now costs $250,000,000,000.
The third thing to note is that THIS - the mis-management of the economy - is the biggest reason why Zimbabweans want Mugabe and Zanu PF to go. Wouldn’t you vote your government out if they did this to YOUR economy?
This via Reuters
Zimbabwe’s central bank introduced 500 million Zimbabwe dollar notes worth just $2 on Thursday in the latest sign of spiralling hyperinflation, only a week after issuing the 250 million bill.
The new highest denomination note would buy about two loaves of bread.
The central bank also introduced special agricultural cheques in 5 billion, 25 billion and 50 billion Zimbabwe dollar denominations to facilitate payments to farmers during the current selling season.
Farmers normally have to carry huge stacks of bank notes after selling their produce to state agencies, while consumers often carry large piles of cash with them for simple daily transactions.
Fair use
http://www.sokwanele.com/thisiszimbabwe/archives/964
A 500mln bearer cheque (aka ‘bank note’) added to Gono’s portfolio of success
A new so-called bank note - which is actually just another of Gideon Gono’s funny-money bearer-cheques (printed with expiry dates) - has hit the streets. It has not yet been added to our display of Gideon Gono’s portfolio of past and current cheques, but I’m sure our readers will understand that it is almost as hard to keep up with him and his printing as it is to keep up with inflation!
The photograph certainly makes one think, doesn’t it?!
It’s hard to believe that the smallest note in this pile - $5 - was issued on 1st August 2006 (you can just make out the date if you enlarge the image).
1st August 2006 is a very important date: this marked the beginning of Gono’s Operation Sunrise where he knocked three zeros off our currency.
Operation Sunrise was accompanied by a big Reserve Bank Of Zimbabwe advertising campaign as well, heralding the new future of three less zeros which was supposedly about restoring value. Here is one advert to remind you (click on it to enlarge and you can see the ‘restore value’ slogan in the top right).
There are three things to point out here: first, the $5 note in our picture had actually been worth $5,000 in July 2006. Value was not restored to the currency, all that happened was three zeros were dropped. The advertising campaign set out to con the public that the real value of our money had somehow returned miraculously overnight; that Gideon Gono was a successful Reserve Bank Governor who had helped to heal the economy.
So the REAL figure associated with the new $500,000,000 cheque issued today is in fact $500,000,000,000.
Your eyes are not deceiving you - eleven zeros - $500,000,000,000.
The second thing to note is the price of bread. A new $500,000,000 cheque will buy two loaves of bread; but according to the government’s own campaign, one loaf cost a mere $85 in August 2006.
Translate that to the proper terms with all the zeros in place: a loaf that cost $85,000 in 2006, now costs $250,000,000,000.
The third thing to note is that THIS - the mis-management of the economy - is the biggest reason why Zimbabweans want Mugabe and Zanu PF to go. Wouldn’t you vote your government out if they did this to YOUR economy?
This via Reuters
Zimbabwe’s central bank introduced 500 million Zimbabwe dollar notes worth just $2 on Thursday in the latest sign of spiralling hyperinflation, only a week after issuing the 250 million bill.
The new highest denomination note would buy about two loaves of bread.
The central bank also introduced special agricultural cheques in 5 billion, 25 billion and 50 billion Zimbabwe dollar denominations to facilitate payments to farmers during the current selling season.
Farmers normally have to carry huge stacks of bank notes after selling their produce to state agencies, while consumers often carry large piles of cash with them for simple daily transactions.
Last edited:
