Indeed, if Rwanda wants to streamline its financial system and position itself as an important player in the future global economy, it should systematically assess and take the steps needed to develop its own national Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).

A CBDC would offer Rwandans a safe, free, and easy alternative to cash. It would expand financial inclusion by enabling more of the unbanked population to participate in the formal economy. And, as cybercurrencies enter wider global use, it would enable the government and private companies to participate in international trade and the buying and selling of digital assets more seamlessly.

But to many Rwandans, the concept of a CBDC remains abstract, as irrelevant as a Rwandan franc was to a 19th century sheep herder. Therefore, the government must ensure that the Rwandan people understand digital currency, are involved in the formulation of digital currency policy, and have full access to the digital technology necessary for using a CBDC.

A CBDC is like the ordinary money issued by a country’s central bank. For example, the Sand Dollar, the first nationwide central bank digital currency (CBDC) in the world, launched in the Bahamas in October 2020 as a ‘Safe & Easy Alternative to Cash’. Like cash, it is issued by the Central Bank of The Bahamas through authorized financial institutions.