The Zimbabwean Dollar was the official currency of Zimbabwe from 1980 to April 12, 2009.
During that time, the currency suffered three massive redominations to deal with high face value paper denominations brought about by hyperinflation. At one point, a Z$ 100 trillion banknote was printed.
Mineral exports and tourism are the main foreign currency earners of Zimbabwe. The country has some of the world's largest reserves of platinum, and the Marange diamond fields, discovered in 2006, are considered the largest diamond discovery in more than a century.
Agriculture was a traditional source of exports and foreign exchange and provider of 400,000 jobs. However, the ZANU-PF government's land reform program, characterized by chaos, violence and corruption, destroyed the commercial farming sector. Zimbabwe is now a net importer of food products.
Zimbabwe’s involvement in the war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1998-2002 drained hundreds of millions of dollars from its coffers.
The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe routinely printed money to fund its budget deficit, causing hyperinflation. At one point, a Z$ 100 trillion banknote was printed. Three redenominations were required to reduce the high face value paper denominations.
In January 2009, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe legalized the use of foreign currencies for transactions. The end of the Zimbabwe Dollar restored price stability, but the government still faces economic problems, including infrastructure and regulatory deficiencies, policy uncertainty, a large external debt burden, and unemployment.
Following a decade of contraction from 1998 to 2008, Zimbabwe's economy recorded real growth of 6% in 2011.
History
The Zimbabwe Dollar (ZWD) replaced the Rhodesian Dollar at par in 1980.
Political turmoil and hyperinflation in the 1990s rapidly eroded the value of the Zimbabwe Dollar, requiring three redenominations to reduce the high face value paper denominations.
In 2006, Z$ 1,000 ZWD was redenominated to one “second” Dollar (ZWN).
Hyperinflation set in, reaching 10-20,000% per month in late 2007. In 2008, Z$ 10 billion ZWN was redominated to one “third” Dollar (ZWR).
In 2009, a further 12 zeros were taken off: Z$ 1,000,000,000,000 ZWR was redenominated to one “fourth” Dollar (ZWL).
Foreign currencies became de facto currencies in 2008 when a number of retailers were licensed to accept foreign money. The Zimbabwean Dollar was abandoned as an official currency on April 12, 2009, after the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe legalized use of foreign currencies for all transactions.
The government of Zimbabwe has insisted that another Zimbabwean currency will only be reintroduced after industrial output improves.
