BUJUMBURA, January 7th (ABP) – Residents of Bujumbura Mayorship are complaining about the lack of 100-franc bills, ABP reported on Monday, January 6, 2025.
Some shopkeepers and bus drivers confirm the scarcity of that bill, and report that 8 bills of 100 BIF are bought at 1000 BIF, which causes them losses. As for the drivers, they explain that because of the lack of that ticket, they make a big loss, as they are sometimes obliged to charge 500 BIF instead of 600 BIF to facilitate the exchange due to the lack of the 100 BIF ticket.
Passengers in Bujumbura say they are sometimes refused access to buses because they don’t have the 100 BIF ticket. Very often, drivers demand that they pay the 100 BIF before they even get on the bus, even if it means paying the rest later.
Those residents of the town hall say that even when they buy food in their respective neighbourhoods, they find themselves in the same situation of having to give up the money for lack of change, because, they say, the seller does not agree to give it up and the loss always goes to the customer.
Despite that situation, the Banque de la République du Burundi (BRB), via its Communications Officer Bellarmin Bacinoni, announced that the quantity of 100-franc bills in circulation has been increased, and that the 100-franc bills in circulation are sufficient to serve the population.
Mr. Bacinoni also pointed out that the BRB has recently asked the country’s banks and certain microfinance institutions to come and stock up on 100-franc bills to give them to the population, whereas previously it was the banks and microfinance institutions that asked the BRB to supply them with the bills they wanted.
He also called on the population to use other available means of payment, such as digital means, as those are less costly and more secure. According to him, banknotes can be torn, lost or become unfit for circulation, which is not the case with digital means of payment.
Despite the words of the BRB’s communications officer, some microfinance institutions visited by ABP, such as MUTEC, stated that the 100-franc bills received from the BRB had all been redistributed and that there were no 100-franc bills left in their stock.
It’s worth mentioning that the BRB has decided to put back into circulation 100 BIF bills deemed unfit for circulation.