Leading members of President Robert Mugabe's regime and their business allies are transferring tens of millions of US dollars out of Zimbabwe to safe havens to avoid the threat of tightening sanctions and the possibility of financial scrutiny by a power-sharing government. Almost all of these transactions are illegal under Zimbabwe's foreign exchange laws and Africa Confidential has seen bank documents that the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) Governor Gideon Gono has violated the monetary rules he claims to enforce. This capital flight drives inflation now officially reckoned at 2.2 million per cent and is set to overtake the previous world inflation champions Brazil, Argentina and Peru within the next three months.
To read the rest of the article you need to either log in or do one of the following:
Become a subscriber today to read our articles in full.
Request a printed example of our fortnightly Africa Confidential newsletter
Alternatively, contact us to find out about access to nearly 50 years of the world's best fortnightly newsletter on African politics.
Looking for a specific issue of Africa Confidential?
Register here for a free copy of Africa Confidential's Political and Statistical 2010 Wallchart.
