The new Z$1,000 bill is the latest addition to a series of new bank notes introduced as a stop-gap measure on August 1 amid a critical shortage of bank notes. The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe said it was introducing the new Z$1,000 note with effect from September 17 for your convenience. It is worth only US$2.
Central bank governor Gideon Gono has also raised the maximum cash withdrawal from banks from Z$500 to Z$1,000, but this is still grossly inadequate given that Z$1,000 can only buy three oranges now.
The Reserve Bank is reportedly running short of Treasury Bills (TB) that they can use as collateral when collecting money from the bank.
Economists say the introduction of the higher denomination note even before the old currency is phased out on December 31 means that the zeroes lopped off during the currency reforms in August were back and that introducing real money was an ill-advised move by the central bank.
Zimbabwe is in the throes of chronic economic crises with inflation well past the 11 million percent mark, four in every five people jobless and no less than 80 percent of the population living below the poverty threshhold.