Zimbabwe has $217 in the bank: finance minister

Star Africa ^ | 1-29-13 | Jekesai Njikizana

[dynachrome]

HARARE (AFP) After paying public workers’ salaries last week, the balance in cash-strapped Zimbabwe’s government public account stood at just $217, Finance Minister Tendai Biti said Tuesday.

“Last week when we paid civil servants there was $217 (left) in government coffers,” Biti told journalists in the capital Harare, claiming some of them had healthier bank balances than the state.

“The government finances are in paralysis state at the present moment. We are failing to meet our targets.”

Zimbabwe’s economy went into free-fall at the turn of the millennium, after President Robert Mugabe began seizing white-owned farms.

The move demolished investor confidence in the country, paralysed production, prompted international sanctions and scared off tourists.

After more than a decade — in which the country suffered hyper-inflation of 231 million percent and infrastructure that crumbled as quickly as prices went up — the situation is now more stable.

But public finances remain a mess and local business battles against unstable electricity supplies, lack of liquidity and high labour costs.

Zimbabwe’s government has warned it does not have enough money to fund a constitutional referendum and elections expected this year.

[skinkinthegrass]

and w/ Timmy G. gone; "Junk bonds" Trader Jack Lew taking the reins....

[St_Thomas_Aquinas]

Could be worse —they could instead be $115 TRILLION in the hole, after you could unfunded liabilities.

Exactly!

[publius911]

Zimbabwe’s economy went into free-fall at the turn of the millennium, after President Robert Mugabe began seizing white-owned farms.
The move demolished investor confidence in the country, paralysed production, prompted international sanctions and scared off tourists.

Now I finally truly understand why many call him Barack Huussein O'Mugabe.
He's intent on replicating the cluelessness of Zimbabwe's leader on a massive scale.

I never expected the producers of Zimbabwe the be the first to go Galt. Assuming they're not all dead yet.

[QT3.14]

Pics look like a Detroit comparison.

[TurboZamboni]

[windcliff]

I wish I had that much money in the bank.

[STD]

Wise, white Rhodesians would not allow Western owned mining companies to loot Rhodesia's vast mineral wealth, so the white leadership must be removed from power. Once the UK and US embargoed their goods and banned importation of military hardware, it was only a matter of time.

Now, these poor dumb bastards have Robert Mugabe and his tribe of henchmen that can't even feed themselves. Hell has a new address

[Little Ray]

Don’t worry. Sooner or later the Chinese will be in there. Then Zims can learn about REAL racism and what a REALLY harsh taskmaster is like...

[kevkrom]

That makes them at least $16,000,000,000,217 ahead of us.

[Tijeras_Slim]

In other words, Detroit with the occasional giraffe.