You may be asking yourself which country or countries have the weakest currencies in Africa? Well, for the start, the Dobra used by São Tomé and Príncipe is the weakest currency in Africa.

While the, Tunisian Dinar and the Ghanaian Cedi are amongst the top three strongest currencies in Africa, the story of some countries on the continent as far as their currencies are concerned is appalling.

Some of these countries are in what the International Monetary Fund (IMF) considers as hyperinflation. These currencies continue to lose relevance and value at a fast pace and high rate.

These currencies are compared to the United States of America Dollar [USD] on the exchange market.

Now, the top 10 weakest currencies in Africa:

1, São Tomé and Príncipe Dobra 

With 1 USD equivalent to 21050.60 STD, the São Tomé and Príncipe Dobra is Africa’s weakest currency in 2021. It is known for being Africa’s smallest country. Based on its exchange rate to the US dollar and purchasing power, it is classified as the weakest currency.

2, Sierra Leone Leon

With 1 USD equivalent to 9, 740 SLL, the Sierra Leone Leon is the second weakest currency in Africa in 2021. The Leone was first introduced on August 4, 1964. It replaced the British West African pound at a rate of one pound equaling two leones (i.e., one leone equalled ten shillings).

3, Guinean Franc

With 1 USD equivalent to 9437 GNF, the Guinean Franc is Africa’s third weakest currency in 2021. In 1959, the first Guinean franc was introduced to replace the CFA franc.

On March 1, 2019, the Central Bank of the Republic of Guinea issued a revised banknote for 10,000 francs and a new banknote for 2,000 francs to commemorate the 59th anniversary of the introduction of its national currency.

Due to declining purchasing power, the smallest denomination currently in circulation is the 500 franc note.

4, Ugandan Shilling

With 1 USD equivalent to 3,694, UGS, the Ugandan Shilling is the fourth weakest currency in Africa in 2021.  The Ugandan Shilling is the currency used by Uganda

5, Malagasy Ariary

With 1 USD equivalent to 3,750 MGA, the Malagasy Ariary is the fifth weakest currency in Africa in 2021. It is divided into 5 iraimbilanja and is one of only two non-decimal currencies in use today (the other is the Mauritanian ouguiya). The Malagasy Ariary is the currency used by Madagascar.

6, Tanzania Shilling

With 1 USD equivalent to 2,313 TZS, the Tanzania Shilling is Africa’s sixth weakest currency in Africa in 2021. It is divided into 100 sentences (cents in English). On June 14, 1966, the Tanzanian shilling replaced the East African shilling at par.

7, Burundian Franc 

With 1 USD equivalent to 1,901 BFF, THE Burundian Franc is the seventh weakest currency in Africa in 2021. It is nominally divided into 100 centimes, but since Burundi began issuing its own currency, coins have never been issued in centimes.

8, Congolese Franc

With 1 USD equivalent to 1,711 CDF, the Congolese Franc is the eighth weakest currency in Africa in 2021. This could be attributed to the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s economic decline since the 1980s.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo was Africa’s second most industrialized country after South Africa at the time of its independence in 1960.

Since then, corruption, war, and political instability have hampered further growth, leaving the DRC with a GDP per capita and an HDI rating that rank among the world’s lowest, making the DRC one of the world’s least developed countries.

9, Rwandan Franc

With 1 USD equivalent to 937 RWF, the Rwandan Franc is the 9th weakest currency in Africa in 2021.

This could be due to the economic decline of Rwanda’s fragile economic base which was destroyed by the 1994 genocide. This severely impoverished the population, particularly women, and harmed the country’s ability to attract private and external investment.

Rwanda, on the other hand, has made significant strides in stabilizing and rehabilitating its economy.

10, Malawian Kwacha

With 1 USD equivalent to 813 MWK, the Malawian Kwacha is the 10th weakest currency in Africa in 2021.

The kwacha replaced other types of currency that had previously circulated in the Malawian economy, namely the British pound sterling, the South African rand, and the Rhodesian dollar.