Some 90% of people in the Central African Republic lack access to the internet, needed to use Bitcoin.
President Faustin-Archange Touadéra wants to rethink his country's economic philosophy
The mineral-rich nation is ranked as one of the poorest in the world - a situation complicated by a near-decade-long civil war which has devastated much of the country. The government has recruited the Russian mercenary Wagner group to help in its fight against rebels. That, along with a patchy and unreliable electricity supply, led some to question whether the CAR was the right country to test the theory that cryptocurrencies were set to replace traditional forms of money.The initial decision, announced on 27 April, was accompanied by little explanation except that it would open up "new opportunities for our country".
Mr Atwine believes that this could have potential as "a lot of cryptocurrency enthusiasts are looking for great places to build where things are legal". "I don't understand what cryptocurrency is," Edith Yambogaze, who sells cassava in Bangui, told the BBC. The Chivo Wallet is a government-developed app to make Bitcoin transactions easier, but recent research suggested that while there were a lot of downloads when it was launched last year, there have been virtually none in 2022.Backers of CAR's adoption of the cryptocurrency, however, are asking people to be patient.
He is a cryptocurrency investor himself and told the BBC how he gets regular updates about price fluctuations on his phone. "I made money today," he laughed as he showed how the app works. Supporters of Bitcoin, which is hailed as a disruptive force that improves the lives of ordinary people, may not be surprised by the attitude of established economic institutions.
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