OWN CORRESPONDENT, Dakar | Tuesday 8.30pm.
In a desperate bid to prop up the ailing Congolese franc, embattled President Laurent Kabila has banned all foreign currency transactions outside the banking sector. Reports from the capital Kinshasa said Kabilla issued a decree over the weekend which says all transactions on DRC territory mustnow be conducted in the Congolese franc, which was reintroduced in June last year to replace the new zaire. The decree specified that all foreign exchange transactions must be handled by the Central Bank of Congo, its branches, commercial banks or approved bureaux de change and other operators authorised by the Central Bank. All services must also be paid in the national currency, the document said, adding that any breach of the new provisions will carry a jail sentence of one month to five years and a fine ranging from 1000 to 50000 Congolese francs, or both. The new measures were introduced after the currency depreciated by more than 21% to 4,00 units to the dollar at the end of last year. Meanwhile, the CFA franc slipped by 12 units this week, opening on Tuesday at the nominal rate of 568,47 to the dollar, from 556,50 to the dollar on the same day last week. –MISA