Hyperinflation

Last night we watched "Blood Diamond" - set in Sierra Leone. It hit on some things that make me the most angry - war, child soldiers, greed of the Western world for Africa's resources... but it also made me think of home. We have hyperinflation. I never thought much about inflation until I moved to Zimbabwe. Inflation, in my former life, meant minor price differences or minor wage increases for a low, single-digit unit that was our inflation rate. Now, inflation has a huge impact on us, and on everyone around us. Friday I went around the house looking in all the drawers for loose bills (coins are, of course, a thing of the past in Zimbabwe). I wanted to gather up any stray money because it literally loses value by the hour. Some friends and I were talking yesterday about how kids in this generation are growing up with absolutely no sense of value for goods. Prices go up daily, so how are you supposed to ever guess how much something is actually worth? All of us were told off at work for complaining about salaries. We were told told that we should be grateful for what we're getting, and for the fact that we keep getting increase after increase. But the truth is that the increases can never keep up with the prices of basic goods; and the inflation rate. I make less then $3US/month (at a real exchange rate).

Ah yes, the fixed exchange rate - 250(zim):1(usd). No matter what happens, the official exchange rate stays the same. Did you know that for John and I to take public transportation to work and back for one day, it would cost us $320US at the official exchange rate? One day on the overcrowded combis! Ridiculous. It's almost like a game with play money. Except that the game is not that fun, and the stakes (i.e. feeding your children) are very high. Hyperinflation isn't flashy; it's not really exciting or newsworthy. But it is extremely painful.