EAC Moves to End Reliance on US Dollar in Regional Trade

What the report says

East African Community member states are advancing plans to reduce reliance on the US dollar in cross-border trade by expanding a regional payments and settlement framework that would let businesses and individuals transact directly in local currencies. The initiative was outlined in Kampala by Uganda’s First Deputy Prime Minister and East African Community Affairs Minister Rebecca Kadaga, who briefed Parliament on the East African Payment System and related reforms on November 3, 2026.

According to the report, the goal is to cut transaction costs, make regional trade easier and support the bloc’s longer-term plan for a monetary union and, eventually, a single East African currency. The current system connects the real-time settlement networks of Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and Rwanda, allowing banks to clear cross-border payments in regional currencies. However, Burundi, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Somalia are not yet fully integrated, which limits the reach of the platform.

Kadaga said the EAC adopted a Cross-Border Payment System Masterplan in 2025 to modernize the network, align regulation for payment providers and encourage wider use of partner states’ currencies. She also called for cooperation from Uganda’s finance ministry, the central bank, banks, telecoms and fintech firms, and urged Parliament to back legal harmonization and infrastructure funding.

The article also notes concern from Shadow Minister for East African Community Affairs Hakim Kizza, who argued that currency shortages still push traders to use dollars as an intermediary. That broader liquidity challenge, if unresolved, could slow the shift toward easier local-currency settlement across the region.