History
In 1968, the kwacha, a decimal type currency replaced the short lived pound at a rate of 2 kwacha = 1 pound (10 shillings = 1 kwacha). During the Kenneth Kaunda regime the value of the currency was fixed at a rate of approximately 1.2 kwacha to 1 USD. During the late eighties and early nineties a severe economic crisis emerged stemming from poor government oversight and overspending. As a result the currency suffered from high inflation throughout the 1990s and 2000s. By 2006, it took 4,800 kwacha to buy one U.S. Dollar.
As of March 8, 2011, 1 US dollar was equal to 4,715 kwacha.
As of January 23, 2012, 1 US dollar was equal to 5,120 kwacha
Read more about this topic: Zambian Kwacha
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—Eugène Ionesco (b. 1912)