Political sketch
Formerly part of German East Africa and Ruanda-Urundi. Independent from Belgium on 1 July 1962.
Rwanda's original inhabitants were the Twa, a pygmy people. The Hutu tribe arrived before the 1500s, and the Tutsi tribe in the 1500s. The Tutsi established dominance over the Hutu. Germany claimed Rwanda as a part of German East Africa from 1890 but its presence was minimal. Belgian troops invading from neighboring Belgian Congo (Congo-Kinshasa) occupied Rwanda without opposition in 1916. The League of Nations created Ruanda-Urundi (now Rwanda and Burundi) as a Belgian mandate in 1923. After the Second World War, Ruanda-Urundi became a United Nations trusteeship territory under Belgian rule. The Belgians ruled through the traditional Tutsi kings, although eventually they sought to establish a more democratic atmosphere.
In 1959, civil war erupted between the Tutsi and the Hutu; the Tutsi king and thousands of other Tutsi fled. Rwanda was declared a republic in January of 1961 and became independent from Belgium on 1 July 1962 under its new Hutu leaders. In 1963, a raid launched from Burundi by Tutsi exiles brought severe reprisals against Tutsi within Rwanda. A military coup occurred in 1973. The new government pledged to end to tribal hostility, but the Hutu monopoly of power continued. A new constitution was introduced in 1978 and elections were held in 1981. In the late 1980s, Rwanda's economy deteriorated as world coffee prices fell and a serious drought caused crops to fail. In October 1990, the rebel Rwanda Patriotic Front invaded from Uganda; its troops were mostly Tutsi who had fled from ethnic violence during the 1960s and in 1973. Negotiations between the government and the rebels began in 1992, and peace accords were signed in Arusha, Tanzania, in August 1993. The Arusha Accords called for the formation of a broad-based transitional government, but extremist Hutu leaders refused to share power and the transitional government did not take office. On 6 April 1994, the presidents of Rwanda and Burundi died when their airplane crashed--apparently shot down--near Kigali, Rwanda's capital. Hutu extremists in Rwanda's presidential guard were suspected. Some moderate Hutu politicians, including the acting prime minister, were killed on 7 April 1994. The army, presidential guard, and Hutu militias then murdered an estimated 800,000 civilians, mainly Tutsi. The Rwanda Patriotic Front resumed its military campaign. Hundreds of thousands of Hutu and Tutsi fled to neighboring countries. In late July 1994 the Rwanda Patriotic Front declared victory. By then more than 2 million refugees were estimated to have fled Rwanda; of those, more than half were in Zaïre (Congo-Kinshasa). Rwanda supported Laurent Kabila's successful attempt to overthrow Zaïre's president Mobutu in 1997 and has remained involved in the Congolese civil war that began after Kabila took power. The people of Rwanda are mostly subsistence farmers, who make a living on generally fertile but densely populated land. The main exports are coffee and tea.
Wars since 1500
First World War in East Africa, 1914-1918 (Germany against United Kingdom, France, Belgium, and Portugal); Rwandan (Ruandan) Civil War of 1959-1961; attempted invasion by Tutsi rebels 1964; Rwandan Civil War of 1990-1994; Congolese (Zaïrian) Civil War of 1996-1997; Congolese (Congo-Kinshasa) Civil War of 1998-2003.
Convertibility
German colonies:
During the First World War, Germany was cut off from its colonies. Germany's African colonies, surrounded as they were by the colonies of Allied countries, were cut off from one another. Therefore convertibility among them in effect ceased in August 1914. All German colonies were conquered during the war; those in Africa were annexed by Belgium, France, South Africa, or the United Kingdom.
Belgian colonies:
During the First World War, the German army occupied most of Belgium. The German campaign of submarine warfare cut off shipping between Belgium and its colonies, and from December 1914 to June 1919 the Congolese (Belgian Congo) franc was not convertible into the Belgian franc. The pound sterling became its anchor currency. Convertibility resumed after the war ended and shipping resumed. During the Second World War, the German army occupied all of Belgium in May 1940. Belgian colonies in Africa sided with the Allies, so the Congolese franc ceased to be convertible into the Belgian franc. It was attached to sterling until Belgium was liberated in the second half of 1944.
Belgium introduced exchange controls during the Second World War on 10 May 1940. In Belgian Congo and Ruanda-Urundi (now Congo-Kinshasa, Rwanda, and Burundi), exchange controls were imposed on 10 March 1941 (Banque Nationale du Rwanda annual report 1964/1971: 12). Apparently these were in addition to the controls Belgium had previously imposed. Belgium had a dual exchange rate from 1 April 1955 to 4 March 1990; it abolished all exchange rate controls on 5 March 1990.
Other
Defaults on or restructurings of debt to the private sector (mainly from Purcell and Kaufman 1993 and Standard & Poor's 2004): 1995 (local currency debt).
Banking crises (data since 1970s mainly from Caprio and Klingebiel 1999 and Frydl 1999): Moderate problems in 1991, with one bank closing as a result.
Frankel and Rose (1996) list of currency crashes: 1991.
No exchange rate data in Reinhart and Rogoff (2003).
References
Primary sources:
--Laws and decrees:
Germany. Overseas gazette. 1890-1921. Deutsches Kolonialblatt. Issued by Kolonial-Abtheilung des Auswärtigen Amts (1890-1907); Reichs-Kolonialamt (1907-1919); Reichskolonialministerium (1919-1920); Kolonialzentralverwaltung, Reichsministerium für Wiederaufbau (1920-1921). Berlin: Ernst Siegfried Mittler und Sohn.
Germany. 1892-1910. Die deutsche Kolonialgesetzgebung. Sammlung der auf die deutschen Schutzgebiete bezüüglichen Gesetze, Verordnungen, Erlasse, und internationale Vereinbarungen mit Anmerkungen und Sachregister. Edited by various persons. Berlin: D. Reimer, later Ernst Siegfried Mittler und Sohn, later Alfred Zimmermann. (The first volume was published in 1898 but covers the period starting in 1892.)
Ruanda-Urundi. Gazette. 1924-1962. Bulletin officiel du Ruanda-Urundi. Usumbura : Imprimerie du Ruanda-Urundi.
Rwanda. Gazette. 1962-present. Journal officiel de la République rwandaise (local title Gazeti ya leta ya Republika y'u Rwanda). Kigali : Presse de l'Imprimerie; later Service des Affaires Juridiques de la Présidence de la Republique.
Tanganyika (German East Africa). Gazette. 1900-1914. Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Zeitung, with supplement Amtliche Anzeigen für Deutsch-Ostafrika and Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Rundschau, with supplement Amtlicher Anzeiger für Deutsch-Ostafrika. Dar Es Salaam: Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Zeitung. (Succeeded by Ruanda-Urundi gazette.)
--Publications of monetary authorities:
Banque du Congo Belge. Annual report. 1909-1959. Bilan et compte de profits et pertes au 30 juin ... ; rapport du Conseil d'Administration et du Collège des Commissaires présentés à l'Assemblée Générale du ... (1909?-1947); Bilan et compte de profits et pertes au 31 décembre ...; rapport du Conseil d'Administration et du Collège des Commissaires présentés à l'Assemblée Générale du ... (1947-1952); Rapports présentées à l'assemblée générale des actionnaires du ...; bilan et compte de profits et pertes au 31 décenbre ... (1952-1959?); English translation (1954?-1959) Report for the Year Ended 31st December ... Presented to the General Meeting of Shareholders on .... Brussels: Banque du Congo Belge. (The annual report in French is also in Dutch.)
Banque du Congo Belge. Bulletin. 1946-1960. Bulletin mensuel de la Banque du Congo belge (1946-1947); Bulletin d'informations générales et revue des marchés de la Banque du Congo belge (1948-1953); Bulletin mensuel de la Banque du Congo belge (1954-1960). Brussels: Banque du Congo Belge.
Banque Centrale du Congo Belge et du Ruanda-Urundi. Annual report. 1952/1953-1960? Assemblée Générale des Actionnaires deu ...; rapport sur les opérations de l'exercise social présenté par le Gouverneur au nom du Comité de direction; rapport du Collège des Censueurs. Brussels: Banque Centrale du Congo Belge et du Ruanda-Urundi.
Banque Centrale du Congo Belge et du Ruanda-Urundi. Bulletin. 1952-1960. Bulletin de la Banque Centrale du Congo Belge et du Ruanda-Urundi (1952-1960); Congo et Ruanda-Urundi: bulletin de la Banque Centrale (1960-1960). Brussels: Banque Centrale du Congo Belge et du Ruanda-Urundi.
Banque d'Émission du Rwanda et du Burundi. Annual report. 1960-1964. It is unclear whether the central bank ever published an annual report.
Banque Nationale du Rwanda. 1964/1971-present. Annual report. Rapport annuel (1964/1971); Rapport d'activité (1972/1980-1981/1982); Rapport sur l'évolution économique et financière du Rwanda (1983/1984-1998); Rapport d'activité (1999-2000); Annual Report (French version Rapport annuel) (2002-present). Kigali: Banque Nationale du Rwanda. (The first two reports covered long stretches of years, and reports since then often have appeared less than annually.)
Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Bank. 1905-1916? Annual report. The bank must have issued an annual report, but I have found no reference to it.
--Web site of the current monetary authority (viewed 20 September 2005):
<http://www.bnr.rw>
--Other publications or Web sites:
Banque de Kigali. 1967. Rapports presentées à l'assembée générale ordinaire des actionnaires du 1 avril 1968; bilan et compte de profits et pertes au 31 décembre 1967. Kigali: Banque de Kigali.
Belgium. Report on Ruanda-Urundi. 1922/1926-1960. Rapport sur l'administration belge du Ruanda-Urundi pendant l'année ... présenté aux Chambres part M. le Ministre des Colonies (1922/1926-1951); Rapport soumis par le gouvernment belge à l'Assemblée Générale des Nations Unies au sujet de l'administration du Ruanda-Urundi pendant l'année ... (1952-1960). Brussels: Établissements Générale d'Imprimerie (by 1950-1953; Imprimerie Fr. Van Muysewinkel (1954-1960).
IMF. International Monetary Fund. 1946-1971 (irregular). Schedule of Par Values. Washington: International Monetary Fund.
Main secondary sources:
Banque du Congo Belge. 1959. Banque du Congo Belge, 1909-1959. Brussels: L. Cuypers.
Banque Nationale du Rwanda. Undated, but by 2002. "Aperçu de l'histoire monétaire du Rwanda." Banque Nationale du Rwanda Web site, <http://www.bnr.rw/bnrnet/>, viewed 20 September 2005
Benda Lema, François. 1978. Développement du système de crédit et de la circulation monétaire au Rwanda. Kigali: Banque Nationale du Rwanda.
Deeken, Matthias. 1913. Das Geldwesen der deutschen Kolonien. Münster in Westfalen, Germany: Druck der Westfälischen Vereinsdruckerei.
IMF ARER. 1950-present. International Monetary Fund. Annual Report on Exchange Restrictions (1950-1978), Annual Report on Exchange Arrangements and Exchange Restrictions (1979-1988), Exchange Arrangements and Exchange Restrictions: Annual Report (1989-present). Washington: International Monetary Fund. (Contains information on IMF member countries and some of their dependencies.)
Leclercq, Hugues. 1998. "Du Congo au Zaïre, un siècle d'histoire monétaire." In Comité pour l'Histoire Économique et Financière de la France, La France et l'outre-mer: un siècle de relations monétaires et financières: 577-97. Ministère de l'Économie, des Finances et de l'Industrie. Paris: Imprimerie Nationale. (Contains some information about the period of monetary union among Congo-Kinshasa, Burundi, and Rwanda.)
Simonis, Raymond. 1981. "Une banque centrale éphémère: la Banque du Congo Belge et du Ruanda-Urundi, 1951-1961." Revue de la banque, v. (cahier) 15, November: 5-61. Brussels: Centre d'Études Financières.
Wehling, Franz. 1929. Die Entwicklung der deutsch-ostafrikanischen Rupie: ein Beitrag zur deutschen Kolonialpolitik. Münster in Westfalen, Germany: Aschendorffsche Verlagsbuchhandlung.
Wertz, J. 1950. "Quelques aspects de l'organisation financière du Congo Belge et du Ruanda-Urundi." In Encyclopédie du Congo Belge, tome III. Brussels: Éditions Bieleveld. (The first volume of the encyclopedia was published 1950. This volume was published in the mid 1950s, but has no date.)
World Currency Yearbook. 1984-1990/93. Brooklyn, New York: International Currency Analysis. Previously called Pick's Currency Yearbook (1955-1979) and Pick's World Currency Report (1980-84). New York: Pick Publishing Corporation.
Monetary authorities: Rwanda
| Dates | Type | Name | Source | Remarks |
| 1916
-30 June 1952 |
private monopoly issue (as part of a currency union) | Banque du Congo Belge (headquarters Brussels, Belgium) | Banque du Congo Belge and government of Belgian Congo, agreement of 10 October 1927, cited in Banque Nationale du Rwanda annual report 1964/1971: 11 | Apparently Rwanda had barter before the First World War. The currency of the Belgian Congo (today Congo-Kinshasa) was introduced in practice with the Belgian conquest of German-held Burundi and Rwanda. The Banque du Congo Belge established a temporary branch nearby in Kigoma, Tanganyika (now Tanzania) in late 1916 or early 1917 (Banque du Congo Belge 1959: 106). During the First World War, most of Belgium was overrun by the German army. The convertibility of Congolese notes into Belgian francs and gold was suspended and the Congolese franc was pegged to the pound sterling. Burundi and Rwanda were later officially included in the Banque du Congo Belge's sphere of operations by the 1927 agreement. The bank established a branch in Kigali in 1929, the first bank in Rwanda (Banque du Congo Belge 1959: 205). Rwanda used coins issued by the Treasury of the Belgian Congo. By the 1930s, the Banque du Congo Belge took over liability for coins from the Congo Treasury. |
| 1 July 1952
-21 September 1960 |
joint central bank (as part of a currency union) | Banque Centrale du Congo Belge et du Ruanda-Urundi (headquarters Brussels, Belgium) | Belgium, decree of 30 July 1951; Belgian Congo, Ruanda-Urundi, and Banque du Congo Belge, agreement of 30 June 1952; Ruanda-Urundi and Banque du Congo Belge, agreement of 4 June 1952, approved by Belgian arrêté of 24 June 1952; all cited in Belgium, report on Ruanda-Urundi, 1952: 44 | The Banque du Congo Belge lost the right of note issue upon the renewal of its charter, as note issue was nationalized in accord with the prevailing ideas of the time. The Banque du Congo Belge felt it would be hampered from competing with other commercial banks if it was at the same time supposed to be their central bank. (There is a statement to this effect in an undated letter in English entitled "The Status of the Bank After June 30, 1952," enclosed in the IMF's copy of the 1951 annual report of the Banque du Congo Belge.) The new central bank issued a single design of notes and coins for what are now Congo-Kinshasa, Rwanda, and Burundi. It held most of its assets, in some years more than 90%, in the form of gold, curencies other than the Belgian franc, and Belgian francs. |
| 22 September 1960
-18 May 1964 |
joint central bank (another) (as part of a currency union) | Banque d'Émission du Rwanda et du Burundi (headquarters Usumbura [now Bujumbura], Burundi) | Ruanda-Urundi, royal decree of 21 August 1960, cited in Banque Nationale du Rwanda annual report 1964/1971: 12 | The Congo left the currency union with Ruanda-Urundi (now Rwanda and Burundi). A new joint central bank stamped separate notes and coins for Rwanda and Burundi from February 1964. |
| 19 May 1964
-present (2005) |
own central bank | Banque Nationale du Rwanda or Banki Nasiyonali y'u Rwanda (headquarters Kigali, Rwanda) | Rwanda, Loi portant création de la Banque Nationale du Rwanda, 24 April 1964, cited in Banque Nationale du Rwanda annual report 1964/1971: 16 | Following independence, political tensions led Rwanda and Burundi to dissolve their currency union. The central bank issued Rwandan coins. Rwanda joined the IMF on 30 September 1963. The second bank in Rwanda, after the Banque du Congo Belge, was the Banque Commerciale du Rwanda (headquarters Kigali, Rwanda). It was established in Kigali in April 1963, and it took over the business of the old Banque du Congo Belge, which became a partner in the new bank (Banque Nationale du Rwanda annual report 1964/1971: 28). The second competing bank was the Banque de Kigali (headquarters Kigali, Rwanda), which opened in Kigali on 27 February 1967 (Banque du Kigali 1967: 5). |
Exchange rate arrangements: Rwanda
| Dates | Official arrangement | Source | Unofficial arrangement, if different | Remarks |
| 1906
-1916 |
pegged (as part of a currency union); 1.33-1/3 (German) East African rupees = 1 German mark | Germany, prime ministerial (Reichskanzler) order (Allerhöchste Ordre) of 23 December 1903, in Deutsche Kolonialgesetzgebung, v. 7: 283, cited in Deeken (1913: 39); prime ministerial decree (Verordnung) of 28 February 1904, in Deutsche Kolonialgesetzgebung, v. 8: 52, cited in Deeken (1913: 42) | The first German resident official arrived in the area 1906. In practice, local use of the colonial currency was quite limited, and almost all trade continued to be in barter. The (German) East African rupee was a decimal currency from 1904. The name of the currency came from the Indian rupee, which was widely used along the coast of East Africa. | |
| 1916
-June 1919 |
pegged (as part of a currency union); 25.45 Congolese francs = UK£1 | Belgium, ordonnance-loi (order-law) of 19 October 1914, cited in Wertz (1950: 582-3); Anglo-Belgian agreement of late 1914, cited in Banque du Congo Belge (1959: 101) | The currency of the Belgian Congo (today Congo-Kinshasa) was introduced in practice with the Belgian conquest of German-held Burundi and Rwanda. During the First World War, most of Belgium was overrun by the German army. Convertibility of Congo notes into Belgian francs and gold was suspended (Belgium, ordonnance-loi of 5 August 1914, cited in Wertz 1950: 582) and the Congolese franc was pegged to the pound sterling at the prewar rate. It is not clear if German East African rupees were allowed to be exchanged for Congolese francs, and if so at what exchange rate. The prewar exchange rate was 1.08 German East African rupees = 1 Congolese franc. The name "franc" for the currency came from the Belgian franc. Notes of the Banque du Congo Belge were made forced tender by Ruanda-Urundi, ordonnance-loi of 27 August 1924 (cited in Wertz 1950: 582). | |
| June 1919
-24 October 1926 |
pegged (as part of a currency union); 1 Congolese franc = 1 Belgian franc | Belgian Congo, decision of June 1919, cited in Wertz (1950: 583) | In the early months of 1919, the Congolese franc appreciated so that less than 1 Congolese franc was worth 1 Belgian franc (Banque du Congo Belge 1959: 115). | Re-established the link to the Belgian franc after ship communication with Belgium resumed following the end of the First World War. (The first postwar ship from the Congo to Antwerp arrived on 7 Jnauary 1919 [Banque du Congo Belge 1959: 115].) The government of Belgian Congo decided to pay postal orders issued in Belgium at 1 Congolese franc = 1 Belgian franc. Previously, the market rate of exchange between the two currencies had been about 1 Congolese franc = 1.20 Belgian francs. |
| 25 October 1926
-26 July 1935 |
pegged (as part of a currency union); 1 Congolese franc = 1 Belgian franc = 0.0418422g gold in practice | Belgium, decree of 14 November 1927, cited in Wertz (1950: 584); Wertz (1950: 583) | Returned to the gold standard with Belgium. The Congolese franc was officially given its own new definition in terms of gold by the decree of 1927; before then, the definition was that of the Belgian franc. | |
| 27 July 1935
-13 May 1940 |
pegged (as part of a currency union); 1 Congolese franc = 1 Belgian franc = 0.0301264g gold | Belgium, decree of 27 July 1935, cited in Wertz (1950: 585) | Devalued against gold with Belgium. | |
| 14 May 1940
-6 June 1940 |
pegged (as part of a currency union); 120 Congolese francs = UK£1 (implicitly, through Belgian franc), or 0.68 Congolese francs = 1 French franc | Anglo-Belgian-French monetary agreement of 14 May 1940; Belgium, Ordonnance Législative No. 61/Fin.-Dou., 14 May 1940; Ordonnance Législative No. 89/Fin.-Dou., 20 May 1940; all cited in Wertz (1950: 587) | During the Second World War, Belgium was overrun by the German army. This monetary agreement, to which the Belgian government aligned with the Allies was a party, did not explicitly mention the Congolese franc, but the Congolese franc was covered through the Belgian franc zone. The prewar exchange rate was approximately 115 Belgian francs = UK£1. | |
| 7 June 1940
-20 January 1941 |
pegged (as part of a currency union); 176.625 Congolese francs = UK£1 (implicitly, through Belgian franc), or 1 Congolese franc = 1 French franc | Belgium, ordonnance législative of 30 May 1940, cited in Banque du Congo Belge (1959: 136; see also p. 137); ordonnance législative of 21 June 1940, cited in Banque du Congo Belge bulletin, July-August 1952: 3; Ordonnance Législative No. 179/ Fin.-Dou., 18 July 1940, cited in Wertz (1950: 587) | Devalued with the Belgian franc when the Belgian franc was devalued to reattain its historical rate of 1 Belgian franc = 1 French franc. The ordonnance of 30 May 1940 imposed forced tender of notes of the Banque du Congo Belge and forbade the export of its notes and of foreign coins. | |
| 21 January 1941
-4 October 1944 |
pegged (as part of a currency union); 176.625 Congolese francs = UK£1 | Anglo-Belgian agreement of 21 January 1941; Belgium, Ordonnance Législative No. 107/Fin.-Dou., 10 March 1941; both cited in Wertz (1950: 587-8) | This agreement formally pegged the Congolese franc directly to the pound sterling, not just indirectly through the Belgian franc. Notes of the Banque du Congo Belge were made forced tender (Belgium, Ordonnance Législative No. 105/Fin.-Dou., 10 March 1941). | |
| 5 October 1944
-30 June 1952 |
pegged (as part of a currency union); 1 Congolese franc = 1 Belgian franc | Anglo-Belgian monetary agreement of 5 October 1944, cited in Wertz (1950: 588) | Returned to the Belgian franc as the anchor currency following the Allied liberation of Belgium during Second World War. On 18 December 1946, Belgium registered a parity with the IMF of 1 Congolese franc = 0.0202765g gold (IMF, 1st Schedule of Par Values, 18 December 1946: 5). (Technically, the parity was 0.02027675g gold, but the IMF only allowed six significant digits [Banque Centrale du Congo Belge et du Ruanda-Urundi bulletin, November 1957: 448]). Belgium changed the rate on 21 September 1949 to 1 Congolese franc = 0.0177734g gold (IMF, 9th Schedule of Par Values, 1 December 1949: 16). (Technically, the latter parity was 0.0177341557g gold.) | |
| 1 July 1952
-24 October 1956 |
pegged (as part of a currency union); 1 Congolese (Congo-Ruanda-Urundi) franc = 1 Belgian franc | Belgium, decree of 30 July 1951, cited in Wertz (1950: 592); Banque Centrale du Congo Belge et du Ruanda-Urundi bulletin, August 1952: 63 | The Banque du Congo Belge lost the right of note issue upon renewal of its charter, as note issue was nationalized in accord with prevailing ideas of the time. The new central bank issued a single design of notes and coins for present-day Congo, Rwanda, and Burundi. | |
| 25 October 1956
-21 September 1960 |
pegged (as part of a currency union); 1 Congolese (Congo-Ruanda-Urundi) franc = 0.0177734g gold = 1 Belgian franc | Belgium, decree of 25 October 1956, cited in Banque Centrale du Congo Belge et du Ruanda-Urundi bulletin, November 1957: 451 | Belgium defined the Congolese (Congo-Ruanda-Urundi) franc in terms of gold. Previously, there had been Belgian decrees from time to time ordering the Banque Centrale du Congo Belge et du Ruanda-Urundi, to value its gold at the same rate as Belgium's central bank, and to give any profit from revaluation of gold to the government of Belgian Congo. Howver, these decrees did not constitute a definition of the local currency as a weight of gold. | |
| 22 September 1960
-18 May 1964 |
pegged (as part of a currency union), dual rate; official rate 1 Rwanda-Burundi franc = 1 Belgian franc = 0.0177734g gold | Ruanda-Urundi, royal decree of 2 September 1960, cited in Banque Nationale du Rwanda annual report 1964/1971: 13 | The second rate was a floating "free" rate (possibly somewhat managed). | Ruanda-Urundi replaced the Congolese franc at 1 Rwanda-Burundi franc = 1 Congolese franc when Congo-Kinshasa left the currency union. The dual exchange rate replaced an "indirect" dual exchange rate that had existed because the Belgian franc had had a dual rate. Ruanda-Urundi registered a gold parity with IMF for the Rwanda-Burundi franc on 26 January 1964. Rwanda began in a weak financial position, which helps explain why it had a dual exchange rate. |
| 19 May 1964
-6 April 1966 |
pegged, dual rate; official rate 1 Rwanda franc = 0.01974824173g gold = 1 Belgian franc | Rwanda, Loi portant création de la Banque Nationale du Rwanda, 24 April 1964, cited in Banque Nationale du Rwanda annual report 1964/1971: 16 | The second rate was a floating "free" rate (possibly somewhat managed). | Rwanda replaced the Rwanda-Burundi franc at 1 Rwanda franc = 1 Rwanda-Burundi franc when its currency union with Burundi dissolved. Rwanda continued the dual exchange rate previously in force. |
| 7 April 1966
-24 August 1971 |
pegged; 2 Rwanda francs = 1 Belgian franc, or 1 Rwanda franc = 0.00888671g gold, or 100 Rwanda francs = US$1 | Rwanda, presidential arrêté No. 38/11, 7 April 1966, cited in Banque Nationale du Rwanda annual report 1964/1971: 21; IMF ARER (1967: 513) | Devalued and unified the exchange rate as part of reforms proposed to the government by both the IMF and the central bank. Rwanda agreed to a gold parity with the IMF for the Rwanda franc on 6 April 1966 and registered it on 7 April 1966 (IMF, 42nd Schedule of Par Values, 15 September 1966: 5, 23). A free market existed for foreign-currency notes, but IMF ARER mentions no large divergence with the official exchange rate. IMF ARER (1967: 513) places the start of the period at 1 April 1966, perhaps a typographical error. | |
| 25 August 1971
-28 December 1971 |
pegged; 100 Rwanda francs = US$1 | IMF ARER (1972: 364) | Gold convertibility for all countries ended in practice when the United States abandoned the gold standard on 15 August 1971. Rwanda in effect chose to follow the US dollar rather than gold as the anchor currency. | |
| 29 December 1971
-23 March 1973 |
pegged; 92.11 Rwanda francs = US$1, or 1 Rwanda franc = 0.00888671g gold (nominally) | Banque Nationale du Rwanda annual report 1972/1980: 82; IMF ARER (1972: 364) | Rwanda did not follow the devaluation of the US dollar against gold on 18 December 1971. Rather, it reaffirmed its former par value with gold, which had been in abeyance during the previous period. Rwanda also adopted wider margins. | |
| 24 March 1973
-31 December 1973 |
pegged, dual rate; 2.30 Rwanda francs = 1 Belgian franc, or 1 Rwanda franc = 0.00888671g gold (nominally) | Banque Nationale du Rwanda annual report 1972/1980: 82; IMF ARER (1974: 368) | Switched to the Belgian franc as the anchor currency at approximately the prevailing cross rate with the US dollar. At the same time, established a special exchange rate of 85 Rwanda francs = US$1 for coffee exports. | |
| 1 January 1974
-5 May 1974 |
pegged, dual rate; official rate 92.84 Rwanda francs = US$1, or 1 Rwanda franc = 0.00888671g gold (nominally) | Banque Nationale du Rwanda annual report 1972/1980: 82 | Switched back to the US dollar as the anchor currency, at the prevailing cross rate with the Belgian franc. The central bank also expressed the official rate as 112 Rwandan francs = 1 SDR, calling it a "central reference rate." | |
| 6 May 1974
-31 March 1978 |
pegged; 92.84 Rwanda francs = US$1, or 1 Rwanda franc = 0.00888671g gold (nominally) | IMF ARER (1975: 404) | Parallel market premiums of over 100% in 1976, when annual data begin, falling to double digits (World Currency Yearbook 1985: 713). | Eliminated the special exchange rate for coffee exports. The central bank also expressed the official rate as 112 Rwandan francs = 1 SDR, calling it a "central reference rate." |
| 1 April 1978
-5 September 1983 |
pegged; 92.84 Rwanda francs = US$1 | International Monetary Fund, Board of Governors, Resolution No. 31-4, 30 April 1976 ("Second Amendment") | Parallel market premiums in low to mid double digits (World Currency Yearbook 1985: 713). | The system of gold par values officially ended by agreement of IMF members. The central bank also expressed the official rate as 112 Rwandan francs = 1 SDR, calling it a "central reference rate." |
| 6 September 1983
-8 November 1990 |
pegged to rigid basket; 102.71 Rwanda francs = 1 SDR | Rwanda, presidential arrêté No. 435/10, 12 September 1983, reprinted in Banque Nationale du Rwanda annual report 1982/1983: 47; IMF ARER (1984: 409) | Parallel market premiums from high double digits to zero (World Currency Yearbook 1985: 713; 1990-1993: 151). | Fully switched to the SDR as the anchor currency at a rate implying a devaluation of 5.2%. |
| 9 November 1990
-9 June 1992 |
pegged to rigid basket; 171.18 Rwanda francs = 1 SDR | Banque Nationale du Rwanda annual report 1990: 27; 1991: 184 | Parallel market premiums of 0-100% (World Currency Yearbook 1990-1993: 151). | Devalued by 40% after the October 1990 invasion by the rebel Rwanda Patriotic Front. |
| 10 June 1992
-5 March 1994 |
pegged to rigid basket; 201.38 Rwanda francs = 1 SDR | Banque Nationale du Rwanda annual report 1992: 3, 195 | The central bank reported that in 1992 the official rate remained in a band of 300-312 Rwandan francs = US$1, and that a parallel market rate existed but it was within 3% of the official rate (Banque Nationale du Rwanda annual report 1993/1996: 135). World Cuirrency Yearbook (1990-1993: 151) shows parallel market premiums of 50-100% until December 1993, when its data end. | Devalued by 15% during a period when falling prices for coffee and continued civil war created economic problems. |
| 6 March 1994
-30 July 2000 |
independent float | IMF ARER (1995: 413); Rwanda, Decree-Law No. SP1, 3 March 1995, cited in Banque Nationale du Rwanda annual report 1993/1996: 125 | Floated in connection with a liberalization of exchange controls, shortly before the genocide of April-July 1994. A currency confiscation occurred from 3-5 January 1995 (Rwanda, Presidential Arrêtê No. 006/95, 2 January 1995, cited in Banque Nationale du Rwanda annual report 1993/1996: 131). Old notes exchanged were redeemed 1:1, but old notes not redeemed were declared worthless. The aim of issuing new notes was to prevent Hutu forces who had previously controlled the government from using the notes they had taken with them when dislodged from power. About 12 billion of 35 billion old Rwanda franc notes were exchanged for new notes. | |
| 31 July 2000
-present (2005) |
managed float | IMF ARER (2001: 767) | The IMF reclassified the exchange rate becuse the central bank intervened often in the foreign-exchange market. The central bank introduced a foreign-exchange auction system on 1 February 2001, apparently supplanting the interbank market (IMF ARER 2002: 789). |