The African Export-Import Bank expects 15 to 20 countries to sign up to the Pan-African Payments and Settlement System by the end of the year, Afreximbank President Benedict Oramah said.
Oramah added that the platform had entered into commercial operation, and so far nine countries have joined it.
According to him, the PAPSS so far uses the dollar exchange rate, but the bank is working towards the conversion of national currencies.
"We are working with central banks to develop an exchange-rate mechanism that would allow Africa’s 42 currencies to be convertible among themselves," Oramah noted. "What we are doing is to domesticate intra-African payments."
The official added that the initiative aims, among other things, to cut dollar reliance over time.
Calls for de-dollarization and the use of national currencies are getting louder across Africa. The proponents of the idea include Kenyan President William Ruto, who has publicly questioned the need for the dollar in trade within Africa.
According to him, instead of the greenback, countries on the continent should opt for PAPSS in order to "trade more freely."
In 2022, more than 80 percent of intra-African payments passed through Europe or the US, causing significant transfer and compliance expenses, according to Mike Ogbalu III, executive director of PAPSS.
PAPSS was launched in July 2019 in Niger by African Union heads of state as a payment and settlement system to support the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area.