SOUTH SUDAN, A REVOLUTION NOT BY GUNS BUT BY BLOCKCHAIN AND CRYPTOCURRECIES - JUNUB SCRIPT.

Given the continuity of South Sudan’s prolonged civil war, the country has lost unprecedented resources i.e Human, capital and time — the fall in production of crude oil has severely affected the macroeconomic stability of the country, thus, its currency A.K.A South Sudanese pound ( SSP).

What South Sudan has lost gravely is time and the innovation happening globally. In the past few years, the world has finally come to terms with blockchain technology a phenomenal dubbed internet 2.0, Block chain is a distributed public ledger that is incorruptible.

It is also the underling technology behind cryptocurrencies i.e decentralized digital currencies. Cryptocurrencies can be called electronic money.

This currencies have emerged as the best alternative for countries that are facing inflation and depreciation of currencies, A good example is Venezuela and Zimbabwe where the citizens have resorted to use cryptocurrencies as the medium of exchange and store of value due to their stability ( though cryptocurrencies have become unstable of late). Bitcoin is the largest cryptocurrency by market value, it’s also the most volatile. Cryptocurrencies have enabled citizens in this countries import the most needed items like food from other countries. Venezuela has created its own cryptocurrency El Petro which in my opinion violates what cryptocurrencies should be — decentralized digital currencies.

South Sudan is now facing a man made inflation and recession and the pound has lost its value by over 1000%, the annual inflation is now estimated at 76.6%.
This goes a long way to show how cryptocurrencies can become an alternative to the pound. It’s clear that blockchain is revolutionizing many industries and sectors.

The use of cryptocurrencies can shield merchants and the public from inflation and foreign exchange risk. Businesses are closing down due to lack of hard currency in a country where almost everything is imported.

The public and businesses have lost confidence in SSP mostly due to fast erosion rate. I’ve experienced this personally- every time I come back to South Sudan after a month vacation I find the prices of goods doubled or tripled.

Great applications of blockchain have emerge in Africa and globally, but close home we have companies such as Pesabase which is revolutionizing money remittance in Africa and is engaged in what I would term “ value Innovation” to ensure that it is the recipients that get the most value from the remittances rather than remittance companies that charge exasperating commissions.

An initiative dubbed eat BCH South Sudan which is inspired by eat BCH Venezuela both of which are Bitcoin Cash powered charities is feeding people in South Sudan. Bitcoin Cash has recently gain traction due to its scalability as a result of hard fork that happened as a result of disagreement in the bitcoin community.

The question in mind is how do we make cryptocurrencies mainstream in South Sudan? — accessibility to internet in South Sudan is a headache, hence, use of wallets that are simple and can be accessed without internet such as CoinText is important.

Near Field Communication (NFC) has been adopted as the best technology for contactless mobile payment and looks promising, m-pesa which is the largest mobile money has adopted NFC in what is dubbed M-pesa 1 tap. An NFC integrated wallet such as Hand cash is vital for wide spread use of cryptocurrencies in South Sudan.

A simplified wallet that is user friendly is vital in promoting use of cryptocurrencies in SSD since not everyone is tech savvy.
A wallet integrated with NFC cards, sticker or wearables will eliminate the need for internet, smart phones and currying bulky notes which are prone to theft.

Blockchain is a technology meant to liberate the populace from exploitation and corruption and there is no country that fit this description better than South Sudan. As much as cryptocurrencies cannot increase the citizen’s purchasing power, in the long run it can stimulate commerce which will be beneficial in creating a robust private sector that will create job as well as business opportunities.

We’ve a simple technology such as M-pesa lifting 2% of Kenya’s household out of poverty.
Blockchain can also be used in other areas such as land registry which is a contentious issue in South Sudan. Land is an important factor of production and is useful in future development of South Sudan’s industries and trade. Sweden is taking a lead in creating a blockchain power land registry and South Sudan should follow suit.

With abundant sun and wind only 4% of South Sudan’s population has electricity.
Blockchain is being used to distribute electricity in places like Brooklyn, New York. This can help South Sudan in generating affordable clean energy through micro-grids that can be created by individuals and private entities.

South Sudan needs a revolution, obviously not by guns but minds, blockchain has offer us a lifeline. So, put on your best lenses and lets talk!!!!

Déng Akoi Arok is a Blockchain enthusiast and the founder of E-gurush- a contactless mobile payment company based in Juba, South Sudan.
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Déng "akim" Akoi Arok
Déng "akim" Akoi Arok
South Sudanese... blockchain, fin tech enthusiast. Founder E-gurush.