HARARE - In a desperate move Fidelity Printers, a subsidiary of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe{RBZ} is minting new Z$10000 and Z$5000 coins - to be injected into the fiscal system by September this year, an official from the central bank has said.

“The RBZ regularly reviews the note/coin periphery and denomination mix based on the changes in inflation trends and the value of money. The decision was made at a meeting held by the central bank recently to provide an appropriate note and coin mix for the convenience of the public.”

The official said the average life span of the $20 000 bearer cheque in circulation had been reduced to less than five months due to high velocity of circulation.

“The cost of supplying notes to the public has drastically increased, hence the decision to introduce coins which have longer life span,” the source said.

Alex Magaisa, a lecturer in corporate and commercial law at the University of Nottingham said: “It is important to maintain lower denominations, otherwise ordinary people will incur huge losses. The introduction of coins and devaluation of Zimbabwean dollar at the official level is simply an acknowledgement of the prevailing economic realities, although it probably does note go far enough”.