The director of international relations of Namibia (Bon), Kazembire Zemburuka, said that the Central Bank would continue to work on its own digital currency, despite the skepticism of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The top manager of the Bank of Namibia said that now the Central Bank is at the preparatory stage of the digital Namibian dollar. First of all, the state stablecoin is aimed at increasing the availability of banking services for the local population and improving cross -border payments. The Bank of Namibia is studying whether local residents will accept the retail digital currency of the Central Bank (CBDC), and the organizations – wholesale, and what problems and risks can create. The Central Bank also needs to understand what functions people expect to see in CBDC.

Doguruka said that the Central Bank attracted dozens of interested parties to the project, including the International Monetary Fund (IMF). However, after conducting his own research, the IMF tried to dissuade the Bank of Namibia from the launch of digital currency, proposing to develop other decisions for instant payments (IPS). The IMF did not see tangible advantages in the launch of CBDC that could improve the country’s financial system.

The garburuka admitted that the CBDC could not solve all the country’s monetary problems and eliminate low financial literacy. However, with the help of the digital currency of the Central Bank, local residents will have the opportunity to receive better financial services. Despite the problems with the CBDC integration with Nampay and IPS, the Namibia bank considers the digital dollar a good alternative for digital payments. The regulator seeks to solve macrochaninance risks associated with liquidity, market rates and currency reserves, the garburuk emphasized.

According to the last year’s report, the IMF, six African central banks south of Sahara (SSA region) are ready to launch their own digital currencies by 2028. Regulators are already testing “normative sandboxes.”