Zimbabwe has begun to sell gold coins to the public in a bid to stem inflation that has deteriorated the value of the country’s unstable currency.

The move was announced on Monday by the country’s central bank, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe. 

The gold “Mosi-oa-tunya” coins – named after Victoria Falls – contain one troy ounce of gold (around 31 grams) and can be converted into cash and traded both locally and internationally.

The coins “will have liquid asset status, that is, it will be capable of being easily converted to cash, and will be tradable locally and internationally. The coin may also be used for transactional purposes,” said the central bank.

ABC reports that 2,000 coins have been distributed to commercial banks. The first batch of the coins was minted outside the country but according to the governor of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, John Mangudya, they will be produced locally. 

In June, Zimbabwe’s National Statistics Agency revealed that the country’s annual inflation rate had reached 191 per cent. After Russia began its invasion of Ukraine in February, Zimbabwe’s inflation rate shot up from 66 per cent to over 130 per cent in May.