The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) has launched a nationwide Schools Monetary Policy Challenge aimed at improving financial literacy and giving learners practi...
The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) has launched a nationwide Schools Monetary Policy Challenge aimed at improving financial literacy and giving learners practical exposure to how monetary policy and the economy work.
Speaking during an induction workshop on Tuesday, senior RBZ officials said the Schools Monetary Policy Challenge (SMPC) was designed to bridge the gap between classroom learning and real-world economic management while developing a generation of financially informed young citizens.
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The programme comes as Zimbabwe continues efforts to maintain currency and price stability following years of inflation and exchange rate instability. According to the central bank, the competition will allow secondary and high school learners to simulate the roles of RBZ officials while handling practical monetary policy assignments.
Under the programme, participating learners will act as “Child RBZ Governors” and Deputy Governors. The competition will also include financial literacy activities, community engagement projects and monetary policy presentations.
RBZ Director of Corporate Affairs Mrs Melody Harry said the initiative was part of a wider strategy to strengthen economic awareness among young people in Zimbabwe.
“Education plays a critical role in shaping financially literate and economically aware citizens,” Mrs Harry said during her presentation at the workshop.
“There is a growing need to bridge the gap between theory and real-world economic understanding,” she added.
Mrs Harry said the challenge would help learners gain knowledge about national economic issues while developing analytical, communication and research skills. She said the initiative also seeks to encourage innovation and practical problem-solving among students.
According to the RBZ, schools will compete at cluster, district, provincial and national levels. Each school team will consist of a Child Governor, two Deputy Governors and a teacher coordinator. National winners will be announced during a ceremony expected to be presided over by the RBZ Governor.
The central bank said the programme supports the Government’s Heritage-Based Education 5.0 framework, which promotes innovation, industrialisation and practical learning in schools.
“The SMPC not only teaches about monetary policy and financial literacy, but also helps build skills for innovation and national development,” Mrs Harry said.
The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education is expected to oversee the implementation of the programme across the country in partnership with the central bank.
During another presentation at the induction workshop, RBZ Director of Economic Policy Dr Nesbert Mupunga explained how monetary policy is developed and implemented in Zimbabwe. He said the central bank’s main responsibility remains maintaining price stability and protecting the financial system.
Dr Mupunga said Zimbabwe currently uses a hybrid monetary policy framework where reserve money is used as the operational target while the exchange rate acts as the intermediate target. He explained that the framework is intended to control inflation indirectly through money supply management and exchange rate stability.
Among the tools used by the RBZ are the bank policy rate, statutory reserves and open market operations. Dr Mupunga also said the central bank produces two Monetary Policy Statements every year, supported by quarterly Monetary Policy Committee meetings which determine policy direction and interest rate decisions.
He highlighted the growing importance of communication in monetary policy implementation, saying the RBZ had increased stakeholder engagement and public communication efforts through surveys, consultations and economic bulletins.
These include the ZiG Perception and Confidence Survey, banking sector surveys, quarterly and weekly economic bulletins and stakeholder meetings conducted under the “RBZ Consults” platform.
According to the RBZ, Zimbabwe’s monetary policy environment has improved significantly over the past year. Authorities said annual inflation dropped from 95.8 percent in July 2025 to single-digit levels beginning in January 2026, reaching 4.1 percent.
The central bank also reported improved exchange rate stability, with the ZiG trading largely between ZiG25 and ZiG27 against the United States dollar since September 2024. Officials said the gap between official and parallel market exchange rates had also narrowed considerably.
The RBZ further reported growth in foreign currency reserves, increased demand for the ZiG currency and continued stability within the banking sector.
The Schools Monetary Policy Challenge is expected to become a major part of Zimbabwe’s annual Global Money Week commemorations, with financial literacy campaigns now set to reach all provinces across the country.
Mrs Harry said the expanded outreach programme was intended to ensure that “no province, no district, no cluster is left behind” in promoting financial literacy and economic awareness among learners.
