Germany refuses to print bond notes for Zimbabwe

A German company which specializes in the printing of bank notes, Giesecke and Devrient has rejected Zimbabwe's request to print bond notes for cash strapped Treasury, prompting the desperate to turn to neighbouring South Africa and other countries for help.

Sources say the German firm which has previously helped the southern African nation print money, is reluctant to print the bond notes as the exact terms of the so-called Afreximbank facility continue to be shrouded in secrecy.

The same German company stopped printing the worthless Zimbabwe dollar in 2008 due to hyperinflation at the height of the country's unprecedented economic meltdown. An official from the German embassy said the Giesecke and Devrient would not print the bond notes.