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The Rhodesia Herald,
8 January 1970
An issue of 14 postage stamps will be introduced to coincide with Rhodesia’s change-over to decimal currency on February 17, said the Ministry of Posts yesterday.

The new stamps will range in value from one cent to two dollars and will portray Rhodesia’s “astonishing development in less than 100 years”, in three themes — land, air and water.
Sport, tourism and wildlife will also feature in the new issue.

The lower values (1c-5c) have land as their theme. Agriculture is symbolised by wheat harvesting, industry by a stamp showing the pouring of molten metal, tourism by the Zimbabwe ruins, commerce by the statue of Rhodes against a background of buildings and mining is depicted simply by mine headgear.

Water is the theme of middle value (8c-20c) stamps, with tourism symbolised by the Devil’s Cataract at Victoria Falls, recreation by a Lake McIlwaine yachting scene, wildlife by a lazing hippo, power by Kariba Dam and irrigation by a Lowveld canal.

The higher value stamps (25c-$2) have air as the theme with bird life depicted by the bateleur eagle, communication by a radar antenna over which an Air Rhodesia Viscount has been “ghosted”.

Social services are symbolised by an air rescue helicopter of the RRAF and the two-dollar stamp by the Rhodesian national flag.
The £.s.d. issue of stamps in use at present will not automatically become obsolete on the date of the new issue.
First day issues can be obtained by placing orders with the Philatelic Bureau, before February 17.

LESSONS FOR TODAY
The imperial/sterling currency was used in colonial times and it was Pounds (£), shillings (s) and pence (d) (£.s.d.) After UDI, the Smith regime conducted a referendum in 1969, that turned the country into a republic, allowing for the introduction of the decimal system and the dollar as its currency.

The introduction of the decimal system and dollarisation was in line with what other former British colonies — Australia, the United States of America, Canada and New Zealand.

Independent Zimbabwe also adopted the dollar — not the United States dollar, a hard currency with complicated global political and economic implications.

The artistic work on postage stamps and the Z$ bank notes and coins has also celebrated the country’s economic potential through agriculture; mining; industry and commerce; and, tourism. Unlike the colonial period where the currency had images of the king and/or queen, since dollarisation, the currency has never had leaders’ images.

Scepticism in the Zimbabwe currency due to the hyper-inflationary conditions in 2007-2008, that led to the introduction of the basket of multi-currencies, the current position where people think that the economy is dollarising on its own, when there is minimal production, is a fallacy.

If Rhodesians celebrated their exit from the sterling era, why does Independent Zimbabwe put so much trust in the United States dollar? Where is our pride and national interest?

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