Officials from the Bank of Uganda (BoU), which is exploring its own CBDC, are looking for Nigeria’s experience in building the first CBDC in Africa and one of the first in the world.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said in a post that its Governor, Godwin Emefiele, had instructed visiting Bank of Uganda executives on the creation of a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).
According to Nigerian news agencies, the Governor stated that they are working to further financial inclusion through the CBDC (eNaira), and that Uganda may profit from similar efforts.
The Governor, according to Nigerian news outlets, stated that they are looking to:
- Establish access to financial services with the CBDC (eNaira), with the understanding that Uganda may benefit from similar efforts.
- While they are still moving carefully, improve the interaction between mobile banking and doing business online.
The Central Bank of Nigeria has been on a public awareness campaign throughout Nigerian marketplaces and cities, urging people to adopt the e-Naira, even claiming that it is better than bitcoin.
The CBDC, which was launched in October 2021, was ranked #1 in a report by PwC CBDC Global Index in 2022, amid various initiatives by central banks to build CBDCs.
While most states are exploring CBDCs for a variety of reasons, according to the same analysis, here are the top causes cited by PwC include:
- Increasing access to finance
- Making cross-border payments easier
- Keeping financial crime under control
According to Charles Abuka, the Bank of Uganda’s Executive Director of Operations, the bank is looking at the CBDC’s requirements and ‘what difficulties it will help fix.’
However, because of a lack of internet in rural areas, there are concerns that digital money will have an impact on financial inclusion.
Kenya, Burundi, and Tanzania have all expressed interest in participating in the CBDC.
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