In the midst of the de-dollarization movement, Sankok pushes for East African Countries to ditch the dollar and revert to local currencies.
The East African Legislative Assembly Representative, David Sankok, pushed for the motion to trade in local currencies. He recommended the motion to the Council of Ministers and partner states to use local currencies for their transactions.
The adoption of trading in local currencies will boost trade among the countries. In addition to this, it will hasten the adoption of East African single currency and also save the region money. He goes ahead to mention that it saves the country from the constant exchange rates that exist.
Most of all, it is a move to break the shackles of economic colonialism. He used the example of, a Ugandan businessman travelling to Tanzania to buy maize. Today, the trader will have to change their currency from Ugandan shillings to the US dollar. Then upon entering Tanzania, he will have to convert the currency from the dollar to the Tanzanian currency. Through all these transactions, there are expensive exchange rates that the businessman has to take up.
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He referred to the rapid growth rate of trade within the East African countries’ regional trading bloc. It increased by 20 per cent, considered higher than any other African trading bloc.
The plan is to create a common market to facilitate trade and cooperation. Thus monetary union had aimed for a common currency by 2024 but pushed it further to 2031.
Sankok now calls for the dumping of the dollar joining the de-dollarization movement that has been going around the world with countries ditching the dollar.
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