Zimbabwe's central bank lowered its policy rate for the second time this year and for the third time in the current easing cycle to ensure the country's economy remains on a path toward grow amid the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Almost a year after it suspended the use of foreign currencies, the government of Zimbabwe has now allowed citizens to carry out domestic transactions in US dollars to mitigate the impacts of the current covid-19 pandemic on the economy.

Zimbabwe announced the introduction of an electronic forex trading platform based on the Reuters system, to allow foreign exchange to be traded freely amongst the banks and permit a true market exchange rate to be determined.

Zimbabwe will introduce a new currency in the next 12 months, the finance minister said, as a shortage of US dollars has plunged the financial system into disarray and forced businesses to close.