“We have enough foreign currency reserves that will be able to cover the next three to six months. By 2030, all things being equal, we will have enough foreign currency reserves to transition to a mono-currency,” Matshe is quoted .

Zimbabwe has struggled for more than a decade to restore a functioning national currency after bouts of hyperinflation forced the government to abandon the Zimbabwe dollar in 2009.

The most recent attempt, the ZiG, short for Zimbabwe Gold, was launched in April 2024 and now accounts for roughly 40% of daily transactions. The currency has been buoyed by a sharp rise in global gold prices, with mining companies benefiting from a 48% rally this year.

The gold boom has also lifted activity on the dollar-denominated Victoria Falls Stock Exchange, where several gold-linked stocks have performed strongly. Analysts say the trend has helped stabilise domestic markets and reduce pressure on the foreign-exchange system.

Matshe said the country currently holds around US$1 billion in reserves, but expects to accumulate enough over the next three years to meet the minimum import-cover threshold required for a fully independent national currency.

Zimbabwe’s central bank believes stronger reserves, along with a more stable ZiG, will allow the government to gradually end the dual-currency system and reduce reliance on the US dollar.

With 93% of its land covered by rainforest, the country is planning to start oil production from recently discovered offshore reserves.

Although this exercise threatens the carbon-negative status of the country, President Chan Santokhi claims the status will stay the same.

"The oil production can go hand in hand with the carbon negative status because we have also implemented, in addition to the oil and gas, our solar energy program. We will increase the solar energy, which will have a positive impact on our carbon-negative status. We will protect our forests," he told AFP.

This echoes his pledge at COP28 in Dubai in 2023.

“Let’s be very clear. Suriname will maintain its carbon negative status even when the offshore oil and gas industry is developed,” President Chan Santokhi said during his speech at the High-Level Segment of the 28th Conference of the Parties (COP).