By A Correspondent
President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government is reportedly considering a controversial plan to phase out the US dollar and adopt the Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG) as the sole legal tender—a move critics say could plunge the nation into renewed economic chaos.
The push follows strong recommendations from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which argues that Zimbabwe is ready to transition to a monocurrency regime. IMF mission chief Wojciech Maliszewski, speaking during a recent Article IV consultation, said the country had made “encouraging progress” in stabilising its currency and narrowing the gap between official and parallel market rates.
But the proposal is already drawing fierce backlash from political activists and economic observers who warn that abandoning the US dollar at this stage would be catastrophic.
“This is a recipe for disaster,” said Stephen Sarkozy Chuma, former Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) youth assembly spokesperson. “The government is trying to force economic patriotism on a public that has no confidence in its own institutions. People trust the US dollar because it’s stable and reliable. Removing it will not restore trust in the ZiG—it will fuel black market chaos, inflation, and public resentment.”
The ZiG, reintroduced by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe earlier this year, currently accounts for only 30% of all transactions. The rest are conducted in US dollars, reflecting deep public skepticism toward the local currency after years of hyperinflation and broken monetary promises.
The IMF, however, maintains that Zimbabwe could move toward a single currency once it strengthens its foreign exchange market and ensures “full price discovery.”
“We would like to see a deeper forex market… and ideally, an elimination of the gap between parallel and official rates,” Maliszewski said. He added that the ZiG had shown “sufficient stability” to be considered for wider use.
Yet many on the ground believe the timing is reckless. Gibson Murinye, a Masvingo-based political activist, warned that Zimbabwe is nowhere near ready for a monocurrency system.
“The economic fundamentals are not in place. Wages are still being paid in USD because no one trusts the ZiG. Shops are quoting prices in US dollars. The moment they remove the dollar, inflation will explode overnight. People will suffer,” Murinye said. “This is not economic reform—it’s self-sabotage.”
Although the Mnangagwa administration has not formally confirmed plans to phase out the US dollar, officials have signaled that discussions are ongoing. Economists aligned with the ruling party, such as Gladys Shumbambiri-Mutsopotsi, support the IMF’s position, arguing that a single currency could enhance monetary sovereignty and help manage inflation.
“A monocurrency will give the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe more control over interest rates, inflation, and broader economic policy,” she said.
However, critics argue that economic control means little without credibility. Many Zimbabweans still bear scars from the 2008 hyperinflation crisis, when the Zimbabwean dollar became worthless and savings were wiped out overnight.
As Zimbabweans brace for potential upheaval, opposition voices are growing louder in urging Mnangagwa to proceed with caution—or risk repeating the country’s darkest economic chapter.