Less than six months after Zimbabwe launched yet another new currency, it was forced to devalue it, signalling new challenges for the Southern African country’s efforts to stand up a local currency and reduce dependency on the United States dollar. In April, Zimbabwe’s central bank launched the ZiG, or Zimbabwe Gold, which was hyped as a stabiliser amid the country’s long-running currency and economic crisis. The ZiG is only one of several attempts Zimbabwean authorities have made to introduce a new currency since 2009 when surging hyperinflation caused a spectacular crash of the Zimbabwe dollar, or the Zimdollar.
