After some minor delays, today sees the launch of Nigeria’s eNaira pilot central bank digital currency (CBDC). Nigeria’s demographics and economy mean this pilot is particularly worth watching. The country has a population of 211 million, of which 62.8% are aged 24 or less, making a CBDC available to a largely digital native population.
Looking at the graph, it’s evident that a significant proportion of the population are minors. However, a substantial number of those youngsters are working. According to the International Labour Organization, 43% of Nigerian children aged between five and ten work.
It’s likely that the CBDC won’t be available to them initially. The pilot’s first phase is targeting only bank account holders, signing them up with Nigeria’s BVN bank identity. The next phase of the pilot will include the unbanked using Nigeria’s national identity NIN, which has now reached 60 million signups.
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