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Walter Nyamukondiwa Kariba Bureau
KARIBA fishermen are demanding cash and rejecting other forms of payment, which has affected trade and pricing of fish.

The price of fish peaked at around $15 per kilogramme in the last three weeks following the introduction of Statutory Instrument 142 of 2019 which made the Zimbabwe dollar the sole legal tender.

However, the prices have started falling as SI142 starts taking effect and the average price is now $9 per kg.

There are indications that the prices might fall further.

In interviews, fishermen and middlemen said there were not accepting other forms of payment as it was easier to transact in cash.

“We only pay cash in the fishing camps where we get the fish and it would be difficult for us to convert the money if we use mobile or electronic money,” said one fishermen who preferred anonymity.

“Fishermen in the fishing camps are the ones who do not accept other forms of payment and as a result we are forced to pass on the burden to our customers.

“We then demand more for mobile money transfer to discourage them.”

He, however, said people still come to buy with the cash, which points to people having cash in their homes or transacting outside the formal system.

The Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority launched a blitz on Tuesday, which saw several people having the fish they would have bought from the fishermen being confiscated.

Zambians, who come to buy fish for resale across the border, have not been coming for the past two days amid indications that the disparity between the Zimbabwe dollar and the Kwacha could be the reason for the development.

Fishermen in Kariba who rely on the local and Zambian market said they had experienced a drop in sales in recent days as buyers from across the border were not coming.