Zimbabwe's new coalition government is to suspend the country's worthless currency for at least a year and rely exclusively on other currencies.
Economic planning minister Elton Mangoma has been quoted in the state-controlled Sunday Mail newspaper as saying the Zimbabwe dollar "will be out at least for a year". He said there is "nothing to support its value".
In January, the government adopted international hard currencies, mostly the United States dollar and the South African rand, as legal tender alongside the local currency. The government now levies all taxes, duties and state services in US dollar terms.
Zimbabwe was once one of the leading economies in Africa. Now the government says it needs $US8.5 billion immediately to reconstruct the economy.
Critics blame President Robert Mugabe for mismanaging the country's economic affairs. He has been in power since 1980.
