Cryptocurrency: Zanzibar intends to use Bitcoin
Zanzibar to use cryptocurrency like Bitcoin
Zanzibar’s government plans to have talks with stakeholders such as banks and ministries to discuss cryptocurrency laws. Tanzania’s Minister of State, Mudrick Soraga, confirmed the plans to Tanzanian news outlet The Citizen on Wednesday last week.
Soraga recently met with local crypto aficionados who told him that, with the overall crypto market reaching over $3 trillion, Zanzibar should recognize and implement bitcoin as an official trade method.
The official is said to have said, “We’re searching for thoughts on the matter before deciding if it’s viable or not.”
Zanzibar still has a long way to go before it can accept cryptocurrencies. According to professor Haji Semboja of the State University of Zanzibar, the local government would be required to develop policies that define the digital currency’s goals and benefits through the Bank of Tanzania.
According to sources, Tanzania Bankers Association chairman Abdulmajid Nsekela believes Zanzibar has a lot to learn about modern technology. “We need to start understanding how other countries use this technology.” He remarked, “Policies for cryptocurrencies will be essential for cryptocurrency to be functional.”
In June, Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan ordered the country’s central bank to begin studying cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. El Salvador became the first country to accept Bitcoin as legal tender in September after enacting a Bitcoin Law in early June.
Many more countries, according to industry giants like Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson, will follow El Salvador’s lead and make Bitcoin their official currency or embrace crypto for transactions like central bank payments. Though Hoskinson did not say which additional countries are likely to follow El Salvador, considering the African crypto market’s 1,200 percent increase in a year, there is a case to be made for them.
In early November, Hoskinson’s Input Output Hong Kong (IOHK), Cardano’s research and development arm, engaged with some officials in Zanzibar, according to reports. As previously said, Africa has long been a strategic priority for IOHK, with the organization launching a number of projects in a range of African countries.
