Scores of Kasama residents today flocked banks to make withdrawals of the newly rebased currency.
Long queues characterized the banking institutions as most people anxiously wanted to start transacting in the new kwacha.
A check by ZANIS this morning revealed long queues at Zanaco Bank, Barclays Bank and Standard Chartered Bank as early as 07:00hours.
Those talked to after accessing the new Kwacha notes expressed happiness.
George Gondwe said he had no problems with new notes because it was easier to carry and conduct transactions.
And Leotina Simutenda, 75, of Location Township has thanked the government for rebasing the money.
Mrs Simutenda said the new currency will be easily understood by elderly people who faced numerous problems with the old currency.
She noted that although the new currency has the same strength as the old one, people will not be required to carry bulky notes in their pockets as the case was in the past.
And Finance Bank customers have cried foul over the non-operational of the Automated Teller Machines (ATMs).
Danny Siwila told ZANIS that the machines have not been working since the December 29, 2012, making it difficult for them to withdraw money.
Mr Siwila called on management at Finance Bank to hastily normalize the situation.
He said he could not use his visa card from Finance Bank to any other places as the Bank has not normalized its ATM.
Meanwhile, some shoppers have appealed to the Bank of Zambia to quickly offload coins on the market.
Juniper Sikombe complained that they were not being given change in coins and the money was not yet in circulation.
Mrs Sikombe has since appealed for a quick intervention by the Central Bank.
Efforts to get a comment from the Bank of Zambia failed
Barely two days since the rebased Kwacha was launched by the Minister of Finance, Alexander Chikwanda in Lusaka, Kasama has no coins, causing panic to many business institutions.
ZANIS
BANK OF ZAMBIA IS A BIG LATE-DOWN. FIRST, THEY ONLY CONCENTRATED SENSITIZING THE PEOPLE IN BIG CITIES ONLY WITHOUT GOING INTO VILLAGES, THEY NEVER EVEN TRANSLATED LITERATURE INTO VERNACULAR, AND SECONDLY, WE ARE LEARNING THAT THEY NEVER EVEN DISTRIBUTED COINS. IN ADDITION TO THAT THERE ARE NO ONE NGWEE COINS. SO, THERE WILL BE NO 99Ngwee PRICES IN SHORT? EDUCATED PEOPLE IN ZAMBIA LEAVE SO MUCH TO BE DESIRED. SO, WHAT DID THEY WITH THE MONEY GIVEN TO THE BY THE GOVERNMENT? BIG BOSSES POCKETED IT AS USUAL?
The best thing Zed has ever done since 1979, i had thought about this long time ago especially when i couldn’t tell whites forks how much the dollar is worth back home.
ITS GOOD TO HEAR THAT IN SOME PARTS OF ZAMBIA THE NEW MONEY HAS BEEN CELEBRATED AND PEOPLE HAVE EMBRACES IT AND THEY DON’T HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THE NEW NOTES- KASAMA IN PARTICULAR. I AM PRETTY SURE A FEW OTHER PARTS OF ZAMBIA HAVE IN A SIMILAR MANNER.
I THOUGHT KASAMA WERE A TOWN WITH BETTER STRUCTURES. ZOONA ZAMBIA BANAISILIZA, KANJANI? AND THATS KASAMA TOWN IN PICTURE? AND THOSE ARE THE TOWN SHOPS?
while some “mumbwa-mubwas” in certain parts of the country are refusing to accept the new notes on account that it’s too “little”. What a dork!!
This a township in kasama
the picture used in this article must have been taken at the time of election campaigns. check there is a coffin being carried and chitenge material covering it. surely this picture is not representative of the story.
One wonders why some politically deceived people were kept away from accessing information about the new currency.
Why the sensitisation was going on, some people dismissed that as mere rhetoric by the current crop of political office bearers.
How can Kasama know, while Kabwe does not know about the new currency?
The new money is just great. Let those born haters and frustrated continue insulting in their folly. Well done PF and BOZ.
Peace and Prosperity to Mother Zambia.
Hi, just wanted to say i liked this article. it was practical. keep on posting.