The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe ( RBZ) is the

central bank A central bank, reserve bank, national bank, or monetary authority is an institution that manages the monetary policy of a country or monetary union. In contrast to a commercial bank, a central bank possesses a monopoly on increasing the mo ...

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

and is headquartered in the country’s capital

Harare Harare ( ), formerly Salisbury, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Zimbabwe. The city proper has an area of , a population of 1,849,600 as of the 2022 Zimbabwe census, 2022 census and an estimated 2,487,209 people in its metrop ...

History

The bank traces its history to the Reserve Bank of

Rhodesia Rhodesia ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state, unrecognised state in Southern Africa that existed from 1965 to 1979. Rhodesia served as the ''de facto'' Succession of states, successor state to the ...

, founded on 22 May 1964, but which succeeded the Bank of Rhodesia and Nyasaland (1956-1963) which had been liquidated at the collapse of the

Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, also known as the Central African Federation (CAF), was a colonial federation that consisted of three southern African territories: the Self-governing colony, self-governing British colony of Southern ...

in 1963. Prior to 1956, there was a Central African Currency Board from 1953, but which had been established as the Southern Rhodesia Currency Board in 1938 to provide Rhodesian currency, fully backed and bound to the British pound sterling at par face value. The local currency which Central African Currency Board was mandated to supply to

Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a self-governing British Crown colony in Southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally known as South ...

(colonial Zimbabwe),

Northern Rhodesia Northern Rhodesia was a British protectorate in Southern Africa, now the independent country of Zambia. It was formed in 1911 by Amalgamation (politics), amalgamating the two earlier protectorates of Barotziland-North-Western Rhodesia and North ...

(colonial

Zambia Zambia, officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa. It is typically referred to being in South-Central Africa or Southern Africa. It is bor ...

) and

Nyasaland Nyasaland () was a British protectorate in Africa that was established in 1907 when the former British Central Africa Protectorate changed its name. Between 1953 and 1963, Nyasaland was part of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. After ...

(colonial

Malawi Malawi, officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast, and Mozambique to the east, south, and southwest. Malawi spans over and ...

) had been established through the Southern Rhodesia Coinage and Currency Act of 1932. The Reserve Bank of Rhodesia (which became the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe at independence in 1980) has continued to function, and has grown in operations and staff, through a variety of changes in sovereignty and governmental structure in Rhodesia and Zimbabwe.

Building location

For over four decades, the RBZ operated from the Reserve Bank Building along Samora Machel Avenue (formerly Jameson Avenue) adjacent to First Street. In the late 1980s, a competition was held to design the bank’s new headquarters and the winning design was by

Marjem Chatterton Marjem Chatterton (; 28 September 1916 – 27 January 2010) was a pioneering engineer in Israel and Zimbabwe, specialising in multi storey reinforced concrete buildings. She was the first female fellow of the Institution of Structural Engineers. ...

from Clinton & Evans and Architects; they went on to design the

Reserve Bank of Malawi The Reserve Bank of Malawi is the central bank of Malawi established in the year 1964 located in Lilongwe. The current governor is Wilson Banda. The Bank is active in promoting financial inclusion policy and is a leading member of thAlliance for ...

building as well. Construction of the new RBZ building began in 1993 and was fully completed in 1997, but was officially opened by President

Robert Mugabe Robert Gabriel Mugabe (; ; 21 February 1924 – 6 September 2019) was a Zimbabwean revolutionary and politician who served as Prime Minister of Zimbabwe from 1980 to 1987 and then as President from 1987 to 2017. He served as Leader of th ...

on May 31, 1996. The building, known at the New Reserve Bank Tower is the tallest in Harare standing at a height of 394 feet (120 m) with 28 floors above ground. It is expected to be exceeded in height by the new Mulk Tower in

Mount Hampden Mount Hampden is the parliamentary seat of Zimbabwe. It is in Mashonaland West Province about eighteen kilometers from the main capital, Harare. It was the original destination of the Pioneer Column of the British South Africa Company; however, t ...

Structure and governors

The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Act provides for a

board of directors A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...

and a

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

. The governor, assisted by two deputy governors, is responsible for the day-to-day administration and operations of the bank. The current governor is

John Mushayavanhu John Mushayavanhu is a Zimbabwean central bank governor and former FBC Holdings Limited CEO. In 1997, Mushayavanhu joined FBC Bank as an executive director in the corporate banking division. In March 2024, he was appointed Governor of the Rese ...

. The governor and his two deputies are appointed by the president for five-year terms that may be renewed. The governor also serves as

chairman of the board The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a Board of directors, board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by ...

. The board's membership includes the three deputies and a maximum of seven other non-executive directors, intended to represent key sectors of the economy.

Governors of the Reserve Bank of Rhodesia

Anthony Grafftey-Smith Sir Anthony Paul Grafftey-Smith, CBE, TD (1903–1960), born Anthony Paul Grafftey Smith, was a British central banker. He joined the Bank of England in 1923, becoming Assistant Principal of the Discount of Office in 1938. During the Second Worl ...

, 1956-1960 * B. C. J. Richards, 1960-1964 * Noel H. Bruce, 1964-1976 *

Desmond Krogh Desmond Charles Krogh was a South African banker and economist. He was the last governor of the Reserve Bank of Rhodesia, and the first governor of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe from 1976 to 1983. Krogh was born on 19 July 1931 in Windhoek, Sout ...

, 1976-1980

Governors of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe

The Governor is appointed by the

President of Zimbabwe The president of Zimbabwe is the head of state and head of government of Zimbabwe. The president chairs the national cabinet and is the chief commanding authority of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces. The incumbent president is Emmerson Mnangagwa, ...

for two renewable five-year-terms. *

, 1980 - 1983, transitional governor from Reserve Bank of Rhodesia *

Kombo James Moyana Kombo or Combo was a kingdom and later a chieftaincy in Gambia during the Gambia Colony and Protectorate, colonial period. Kombo was part of the Mali Empire and gained independence after its fall, and was then ruled by the Sambou Bainuk people, ...

, 1983 - 1993, deputy in 1981 *

Leonard Tsumba Leonard or ''Leo'' is a common English masculine given name and a surname. The given name and surname originate from the Old High German '' Leonhard'' containing the prefix ''levon'' ("lion") from the Greek Λέων ("lion") through the Latin '' ...

, 1993 - June 2003 *

Charles Chikaura Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was ...

, June 2003 - December 2003, acting *

Gideon Gono Gideon Gono (born 29 November 1959) is a former Governor of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, serving from 2003 to 2013, and is the former CEO of the CBZ Bank Limited. Gono became known internationally due to his connection to the hyperinflation ...

, 2003-2013 * Charity Dhliwayo, 2013-2014, acting *

John Mangudya John Panonetsa Mangudya (born 5 October 1963) is a former governor of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe. He was appointed in March 2014 by the then Zimbabwean president, Robert Mugabe, and began his tenure as governor on 1 May that year. His second 5 ...

, 2014 - April 2024 *

, April 2024 -

Key people

# Dr. Jesimen T. Chipika, Deputy Governor # Dr. Innocent Matshe, Deputy Governor # Dr. Morris B. Mpofu, Executive Assistant to the Governor # Dr. Nebson Mupunga, Director - Economic Research, Modelling & Policy. # Mr. Azvinandaa Saburi, Director - Bank Operations and Currency Management # Mr. Farai Masendu, Director - Exchange Control Inspectorate and Compliance Enforcement # Mrs. Virginia Sithole, Bank Secretary and General Counsel # Mr. Philip T. Madamombe, Director - Bank Supervision Surveillance and Financial Sector # Mr. Cleopas Chiketa, Director - Human Resources # Mr. N. Nyemudzo, Director - Finance, Assets and Stores Management # Mr. C. Haparari, Director - ICT, Innovation Hub and Fintech # Mr. J. Mverecha, Director - Policy and Strategy # Dr. T. Chhitauro, Director - Capital Flows, Administration, Accounting & Management # Mrs. M. Harry, Director-- Coporate Affairs # Mr. W. Nakunyada, Director - External Affairs and Stakeholder Engagement

Operations

The Reserve Bank's most important role is to create and enact monetary policies. According to the bank's website, as the only producer of Zimbabwe's bank notes and coins, it regulates the amount of money in circulation. However, since a range of foreign currencies is currently in use for domestic transactions, the bank's ability to control money supply is limited. The Reserve Bank also looks after the country's gold, as well as purchase and refine precious minerals like diamonds, gold and silver through its subsidiary Fidelity Printers and Refinery. The bank serves as an advisor to the government, providing the government with daily banking services. It is also active in promoting

financial inclusion Financial inclusion is the availability and equality of opportunities to access financial services. It refers to processes by which individuals and businesses can access appropriate, affordable, and timely financial products and services—which ...

policy and is a member of the

Alliance for Financial Inclusion The Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI) is a policy leadership alliance owned and led by member central banks and financial regulatory in developing countries with the objective of advancing financial inclusion. As of February 2025, AFI had 9 ...

Farm Mechanisation Programme

In 2007 and 2008, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe ran a programme which was stated to be designed to support commercial agriculture and the 'new' farmers that had resulted from the Fast-track land reform. The plan was to purchase agricultural equipment and distribute it to farmers by bank loans. It was called the Farm Mechanisation Programme. The stated purpose was to enhance productivity on the farms through mechanisation. The equipment included combine harvesters, tractors, disc ploughs, planters, harrows and generators. The bank established a US$200 million fund for the programme. Unfortunately the main beneficiaries of the program were "well to do people (government Ministers, senior government officials, Judges among others)," people who had received large chunks of land under fast-track land reform. Equally unfortunate, many of the beneficiaries did not repay the loans. Rather than other remedies, the RBZ chose to seek a legislative solution, and eventually in 2015 the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Debt Assumption Act was passed where the government took over the debts of the RBZ, including the Farm Mechanisation Programme debts. The government later claimed that they were not loans but were subsidies. Following in 2022 the government initiated a second RBZ Farm Mechanisation Programme called the Belarus programme as the equipment was provided from

Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...

. The programme was in multiple phases, US$51 million in phase one, and US$52 million in phase two, with additional phases to come. In phase one 474 tractors, 60 combine harvesters, 210 planters and five lowbed trucks were distributed under loan agreements. The government indicated that the majority (98%) of those loans were repaid by the farmers.

Relevancy

Due to the unstable economic conditions and failure to control inflation (2008), economists have suggested that the Reserve Bank be abolished. Some economists have suggested that the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe be reformed. Legislation in 2008 was debated in the lower house of the Zimbabwean parliament with a view to limiting the so-called quasi-fiscal activities of the Reserve Bank.

References

External links

Official site: Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe
{{Authority control

Economy of Zimbabwe Banks established in 1956 1956 establishments in the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland 1980 establishments in Zimbabwe