The South Sudanese Pound is yet to appreciate against the US dollar nearly one month after the introduction of the SSP1,000 banknote. During the unveiling of the new SSP1,000 generation banknote on February 9, Central Bank Governor Dier Tong Ngor pledged the move was aimed at giving the local currency a facelift following periods of inflation and value depreciation.

The governor said in a statement: ‘‘This new higher value denomination will only partially restore the dollar value of SSP 10 in 2011, but high enough to significantly reduce the deadweight loss and high transaction cost in making high-value purchases in a cash-based economy like South Sudan.’’

But the move that was touted to be the game-changer now looks like an inconsequential public stunt going by the figures adduced by the Central Bank and other independent economic analysts. Stunted figures For instance, the exchange rates beaming on the Central Bank website shows that on February 1, the local currency was bought at 175.0432 per dollar and sold for 180.3745, giving an indicative figure of 177.7089. The situation never improved as of March 2-one month later and almost three weeks after the introduction of the new banknote.

The SSP was bought at 175.2354 per dollar and sold at 180.5726 and had an indicative figure of 177.9040. This even means the currency depreciated by 0.19. Despite the optimism by the state banker, Trading Economics—a global economics outlook website—predicts a stagnation of currency’s figure at 177 in the near future- till post January 22 when it will find a breakthrough.

The situation is even worse than it looks on the corridors of banks. A spot check by The City Review reveals that the SSP is undergoing a serious beating in the black market. A dollar fetches whooping SSP650, meaning the country’s inflation rate is still alarming. The currency strength is regulated by the availability and demand of the foreign currency in the local market, and the country’s imports versus exports. The last time the Central Bank revealed the currency in circulation was in September 2019, when Governor Ngor announced a 31 per cent injection increase. This translated into SSP48.55 billion of which SSP15 billion was paid salaries by the government and private sectors. ‘‘This sudden increase is one of the key reason putting pressures on the SSP.

 If left unchecked, this will lead to higher,’’ governor Ngor warned in a statement after a meeting with the Monetary Policy Committee meeting. The committee crafted measures to relieve pressure on the local currency. Part of the measures was to assign a particular amount of US dollars for the importation of goods and services and licensing foreign exchange forex bureaus to streamline the market. But over one year down the line, the fruits of such monetary policies are yet to be seen.