This will hurt me...

While we wait on the outcome of the Zimbabwe elections – a topic upon which I've mused of late – I was drawn to an interesting little factbox on the Reuters internets the other day that puts some of the current issues faced by Zimbabweans in a little perspective. The full list is more comprehensive, but the things that jumped out to me included: Average life expectancy dropped from 63 in 1990, to 37 in 2005. Zimbabwe's mortality rate for children under five was 76 deaths out of every 1,000 in 1990, and increased to 105 in 2006. The World Food Program estimates that 45 percent of the population are malnourished. The price of a loaf of bread two weeks ago was about ZMD$6.6 million on the official market, and around ZMD$15 million on the black market. This compares to October of last year, where a loaf went for ZMD$100,000 , in 2003 ZMD$1,000 and in 1998 ZMD$5 . One might guess that sandwiches are presently off the menu in Harare!

I was looking at this photo essay from Foreign Policy magazine this morning, and one photo struck me in particular. It essentially was someone packing a briefcase full of cash. As I mentioned yesterday , with inflation running at over 100,000 percent, Zimbabwe's rate of inflation is currently the highest in the world. Now, like most I suspect, I'm struggling to get my head around what that means, and its broader implications for people. Using a couple of different online currency convertors, ZWD$1 million fetches roughly: AUS $37 or US $34 or Euro €21. Now this is achieved using flat currency transaction on market rate. In the real world, Zimbabweans would have to take whatever the black marketers are offering. The scantest of research reveals that the best that they might hope for out of that same ZWD $1 million is somewhere between US $3 to US $5. To be totally honest with you, I still can't get my head around it. Surely wages cannot keep up with that sort of inflation....

First up, I think that Costello’s assessment of John Howard as an economic manager is pretty much spot on, but I would have thought that he’d be more careful in the manner in which he’d express himself. I applaud any politician brave enough to offer an honest critique, but you really have to wonder about the shrewdness of Costello continuing the criticism yesterday. After a number of standoffs over the leadership, again the Treasurer looks like an angry younger sibling sniping away, only not having the guts or power to challenge his older brother. Also, you can’t help but feel that he is having a bob each way by staying in the job as Treasurer, either not challenging more forthrightly on policy or the leadership, but also “expressing concerns” at Federal Government spending. Again, he really does come across as both disloyal and weak, not two traits that you’d want in a future PM. To do it in an election year compounds it. On this, I think that the smart money should be on him never b...

When did big business in Australia decide that the government is responsible for training its workforce? Surely if the market cannot facilitate new skilled workers, it is failing. I'm confused that after 30 years if whining about government intervention in the economy, they're now whining about the government NOT intervening in the economy.