Rwanda sells dollars to shore up franc

Rwanda is selling $8 million a week to support a weakening local currency due to high demand for dollars to pay for major projects, central bank governor John Rwangombwa said, as the country runs low on cash to pay for its imports.

Rwanda’s foreign reserves have been hit by falling revenues from mining, and this month it secured an 18-month $204 million standby facility from the International Monetary Fund to bolster the reserves.

Still, Rwanda’s trade deficit widened 11 percent in the year to March and exports may deteriorate further, Rwangombwa said.

Mining exports, mostly of the metallic ore coltan, are Rwanda’s second-biggest foreign exchange earner after tourism. —Reuters