African nations should trade in local currencies, not the U.S. dollar, said Kenya President William Ruto in a June 11 address to the National Assembly of Djibouti.
“Traders from Djibouti selling to Kenya, or traders from Kenya selling to Djibouti, have to look for U.S. dollars. How are U.S. dollars part of the trade between Djibouti and Kenya? Why? And we are saying that today, AfriExImBank have given us a mechanism where traders in our continent can trade in their goods and services, and the Africa ExIm Bank will settle payments in local currency. That is why Kenya champions the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System, which is done by our own institution, the Africa ExIm Bank. Why, members? Why is it necessary for us to buy things from Djibouti and pay in dollars? Why? There is no reason!
“And we are not against the U.S. dollar. We just want to trade much more freely. Let us pay in U.S. dollars for what we are buying from the U.S., but what we are buying from Djibouti, let us use local currency.”
Source of speech: https://twitter.com/WilliamsRuto/status/1667864150725230592
Relevant clip: https://twitter.com/simonateba/status/1668415862657671168
