And finally…extra curricular collateral

The country’s education minister Lazarus Dokora told the pro-government Sunday Mail newspaper that schools will have to show flexibility when it comes to demanding tuition fees from parents, and that they should accept not only livestock, but also services and skills.

“If there is a builder in the community, he/she must be given that opportunity to work as a form of payment of tuition fees,” the paper quoted him as saying.

Some schools are already accepting livestock as payments as the crisis deepens, the Sunday Mail reports.

A ministry official clarified Dr Dokora’s comments: “Parents of the concerned children can pay the fees using livestock. That is mostly for rural areas, but parents in towns and cities can pay through other means; for instance, doing certain work for the school.”

Under legislation introduced in the country’s parliament this week, citizens borrowing from banks would be allowed to register “movable” assets, including motor vehicles, machinery, and livestock as collateral.

According to the Bulawayo24 news portal, Zimbabwe’s worsening cash crisis means that people frequently spend hours queueing at banks to withdraw cash. The government says the shortage is due to people taking hard currency out of the country, but critics say it’s due to lack of investment and rising unemployment.