Zimbabwe introduces 100-billion-dollar note

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Zimbabwe is setting records no other country will achieve it for a long time, first there was news that they had a record 2.2 million percent inflation rate in a recent article reported by Vinay Chand and now the release of the 100-billion-dollar note.

The Zimbabweans won't mind if the currency has a large value to buy goods but one US Dollar value is equivalent to 27,215 Zimbabwe Dollars.

The new 100-billion-dollar note will be in circulation next Monday according to the Zimbabwe Central Bank authorities.

The past six months, the Central Bank has been issuing higher denomination notes from as low as 10-million-dollar note to the current 100-billion-dollar note. In January, the bank issued a 10-million-dollar note, and then in April they issued a 50-million-dollar note. In May, few more currencies were issued for 100 million and 250 million dollars. Then in rapid succession the bank issued five billion, 25 billion and 50 billion notes.

The economy got worse because of the recent election crisis in Zimbabwe and Mugabe was elected again with no opposition running against him. The inflation shot up from 165,000 percent in February to 2.2 million in June.

According to Reuters, nearly 80 percent of the population lives below the poverty line and there is massive shortage of basic goods in shops.

Early this month, it cost 50 billion dollars to buy a burger in Zimbabwe, if the price had remained the same, they can buy two burgers now.

I hope UN or the African Union instead of turning a blind eye towards this, they do something to alleviate the sufferings of Zimbabweans. The problem is not in the currency, the problem is with the Mugabe administration in my opinion.