I couldn't make it to #ABC2025, but I'm there in spirit. So for anyone else stuck at home, let's look at some of the African countries in the @npub17xvf...c9as CBDC Tracker that are researching CBDCs: Botswana, Namibia, and Kenya. The Bank of Botswana kicked off its CBDC exploration in 2021. However, a central bank official confirmed this summer that they are still "at an early stage of exploration." image The Bank of Namibia began its research in 2020 and eventually received assistance from the IMF on at least three different occasions. However, in 2024, the IMF “did not find a strong case for issuing a [retail CBDC] at the moment." image The Central Bank of Kenya had a bit of a late start in 2022, but it has repeatedly found that CBDCs are a solution in search of a problem. The central bank said many of Kenya's problems "cannot be solved with CBDCs" and that launching a CBDC is not "a compelling priority." image Curious to learn more? You can find more information in the HRF CBDC Tracker. And tomorrow, I'll spotlight the pilot projects.