Kenya protest leaders see crypto as alternative to unjust system

Kenyans are turning to crypto to make ends meet amid widespread unemployment and distrust of President William Ruto as nationwide protests continue, sources in Kenya said Decrypt Young people across the country are yearning more than ever to break free from the financial system – and many of them believe that creating a crypto wallet is the first step.

In an attempt to reduce the country’s debt, the Kenyan government has sought to raise funds by taxes. This included new levies on basic goods such as a 16% sales tax on bread and a 25% tax on vegetable oil. An “eco-levy” was also proposed that would have increased the price of menstrual products, an item that many women in Kenya I already have a hard time affording it.

Protests have broken out across the country in response to the controversial bill. On Tuesday, the parliament building in Nairobi was ignite and the protests turned tragic. On Wednesday, Kenyan President Ruto withdrew the bill.

But for many Kenyans, distrust remains.

“We are not at all happy with this situation and demand the resignation of the president,” said Martin Kittony, a Kenyan activist and self-proclaimed cultural ambassador. Decrypt“We have the impression that he no longer has any power. »

At least 24 people died last week. Sources on site indicated Decrypt they expect this number to increase as The government deploys the army to restore order in the country. The rally against the government was largely led by Kenyan youth, who feel the government has repeatedly failed them. Faced with job scarcity, they turned to crypto as a viable new way to make money.

Young Kenyans, whose ages range from 15 to 34, led these protests displaying their disillusionment with the state of the country. This age group represents 35% of the Kenyan population and, according to Kenya Employers Federationfaces an unemployment rate of 67%, the highest of any group in the country.

Airdrop Farming and Play to Win

“We pay taxes, but we don’t know exactly where the money goes,” said a 32-year-old unemployed Kenyan. Decrypt. “I have never seen anything this government has done. Just promises.”

This source, as well as several others involved in this story, asked not to be named for fear of retaliation from the government.

The 32-year-old unemployed man lives in a rural village far from the two major cities of Nairobi and Mombasa. He has lived there most of his life and says he has never seen the government use taxes to help his community.

As a result, people in the country are looking for other ways to earn money.

A group formed around a Solana coin called Matatu. They have They used the protests as a way to promote cryptocurrencies as a new way to make money.

Another Kenyan protester, a 28-year-old technology consultant, said Decrypt that he believes that airdrop farming, participating in token giveaways and creating content for meme coins are a better way for people to earn money than the traditional avenues available in the country.

He explained that 1 SOL ($147) is worth more than a month minimum wage in Kenya and believes that this “could certainly be gained over time” by engaging in crypto projects.

An airdrop is essentially a giveaway of crypto tokens that rewards people who have used and helped build a project. Free coins could be cynically seen as a marketing stunt, though many crypto projects use airdrops as a way to distribute tokens as widely as possible.Although crypto wallets are anonymous, a project can see which wallets have interacted with it, how often, and then grant rewards based on a user’s engagement.

There are other ways to “earn” cryptocurrencies through projects, like games to win.

This is reminiscent of the days when Ethereum game to win Axie Infinite I saw players in countries like Philippines And Indonesia are trying to support their families with their crypto rewards. Users were rewarded with tokens for their progress in the game. And for a while, approx. 40% of Axie Infinity player base was based in the Philippines.

But it was short-lived because the the gaming economy has since collapsed.

Kenyans have taken to the streets to protest against the government’s controversial bill. Image: Shutterstock

Crypto Wallets and Low Fees

“During the demonstration we were teaching people how to organize Ghost Walletsand how to buy Solana“Young people were excited about controlling their money and putting power back in the hands of the people,” Kittony said.

As Kenyans look at the state of their country, he added, they are concerned that the Kenyan shilling, the local currency, is becoming unstable.

Over the past five years, the Kenyan shilling has fallen 19.5% against the US dollar, according to Google Finance. To put this into perspective, the British pound has slipped by only 0.3% during the same period.

“The value of cryptocurrencies is only increasing,” Kittony said. “This is something that young Kenyans are very aware of. The challenge is to educate young people widely on this topic.”

Fortunately, Kenya has a head start when it comes to digital currency.

Across the country, 96% of Kenyan households include at least one person who uses the M-PESA mobile money app. The app can be used to deposit, withdraw and send money to other people and businesses. But while it is a popular solution, residents complain that M-PESA fees are too high.

“If someone sends KES 200 home, they will have to pay KES 7 for the transfer and KES 29 for cash withdrawal, which is 18% of the money,” says the 28-year-old Kenyan technology consultant. “While blockchain networks have very favorable fees which make the system much fairer. »

Kenyans are already accustomed to using their mobile phones to send and receive money, so the next step is to swap that for a crypto app, the consultant said. Decrypt.

One of the hurdles here is that M-PESA can work on any phone, including basic phones. But most crypto applications need to be run on smartphones, although some of them have been trying to bridge this gap.

However, widespread adoption of cryptocurrencies faces serious obstacles.

The long shadow of Worldcoin

In 2023, Worldcoin began scanning people’s eyes and issuing its WLD token in Kenya. Thousands of people are queuing in the registration centers last year. But then Kenyan authorities suspended Worldcoin Amid Privacy Concerns, compare the project to a “gang of criminals”.

World Currency is a digital identification platform that proves your “personal identity” in an effort to combat the current and future threat of artificial intelligence. Led by OpenAI CEO Sam Altmanpeople could have their eyes scanned by an “Orb” that would verify their “personality” by granting them access to the blockchain platform. Users can verify their credentials without needing to reveal their full identity by using the World app in addition to storing crypto. In exchange for signing up, you will receive around $49 in the project’s crypto token. WLD.

Kenya is not the only country to reject the project, however. Authorities in most countries were alarmed when the silvery iris-scanning orbs began appearing.

France and Germany, for example, coordinated an investigation on the legality of the project. They concluded that it seemed “questionable.” In addition to the legal repercussions, MIT Technology Review investigation found that the project did not fully explain privacy issues to people getting iris scans in low-income countries such as Kenya, Sudan and Ghana. Despite this, company complaints having onboarded over 10 million users, representing a significant step towards widespread adoption.

With Worldcoin as a predecessor, blockchain educators might face an uphill battle.

“Most of the conversations (in Kenya) are about promoting more blockchain education, given how decentralized this movement is.” Sherie Margaret Ngigia Kenyan NFT artist, said Decrypt“No one is leading this movement and people are using their phones to mobilize resources and information.”

As fighting rages in Nairobi, people are braving clouds of tear gas to educate protesters about cryptocurrency or help them create Phantom wallets. Resources are spreading via WhatsApp and Twitter as the government denies allegations it tried to cut off the country’s internet.

“It’s become a really tricky situation right now, the army has been deployed,” said the 28-year-old Kenyan tech consultant. “If we can make one person’s life better, it’s worth it.”