Do not let us down Dr Governor!
need for effective and coordinated communication from the and all State
RBZ agencies and departments that play a role in the implementation of monetary policies.
The should craft a communications
RBZ manual alongside the Monetary Policy that agencies like Zimra, IPEC, SECZ, NSSA can quickly refer to and provide guidance to players in their spheres of regulation. Dissonance brings speculation and arbitrage which directly threaten the effectiveness of policy.
The also needs to directly commu
RBZ nicate policy imperatives with the various economic actors at their level through well thought out written communication that has simpler vocabulary, graphics, diagrams and graphs, in addition to any other media engagement they might undertake.
Communication through the banks is usually too technical as the banks tend to focus on aspects that change the banking relationship with their customers.
Thirdly, is the timely provision of data to the market. The through the Mon
RBZ etary Policy has committed to providing certain data to the market like reserve money details, export retention stats, open market operation data, etc.
These commitments need to be followed through on to maintain transparency and avoid information arbitrage and its inherent dangers. Were possible the bank should take time to explain the key concepts behind their data to those willing to listen. The robust discussions on the introduction of the structured currency give evidence to the wide audience that exists for these explainers.
Lastly, discipline. In as much as the
RBZ has taken a stance to be hard on itself and others, there is need to maintain this posture and attend to matters arising with swift, impartial firmness and fairness. How the will handle the prob
RBZ lem actors is going to set the tone on how people behave, much more than the actual policy measures.
The road ahead is definitely unclear and many people’s hopes and fears have been dashed at the hands of previous Monetary Policy Statements with a good number of hardworking people falling behind in ways they can never recover from.