Is the East African Community out to delete the U.S. dollar?

The East African Community is developing an integrated payment and settlement system to reduce reliance on the U.S. dollar and facilitate regional trade, Uganda’s First Deputy Prime Minister and EAC Affairs Minister Rebecca Kadaga said. The existing system connects the real-time gross settlement networks of Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and Rwanda, enabling cross-border transactions in regional currencies, while Burundi, South Sudan, the DRC and Somalia are not yet fully integrated. Adopted in 2025, the Cross-Border Payment System Masterplan calls for modernisation, harmonised regulations and greater use of member states’ currencies. Opposition lawmaker Hakim Kizza welcomed the initiative and urged the government to establish a central bank-backed liquidity facility.