I never carry cash on me. 

Maybe I’ll have a few dollars haphazardly stuffed into a wallet between receipts I didn’t want, but usually I rely on my debit card. Cash--physical, tangible currency, is becoming a thing of the past. Since the first debit card hit the market in 1966, Americans have embraced the digital dollar. In 2009, debit and prepaid cards were used in over 37 billion transactions. Needless to say, it has become a staple of our economy.

But for Uganda, this is a very new thing, and it’s taking the country by storm. This video from Ericsson shows how Ugandans are adopting Mobile Money. 

Mobile Money is the next step in digital currency. By linking together 6 billion mobile subscribers to 1.6 billion bank accounts worldwide, banking is becoming more accessible and more secure than ever before.

This service is revolutionary for Uganda because before its implementation, the country was cash-based. That meant that a business owner would have to wait until they could get to a bank to deposit their earnings, which were few and far between. Now, there are over 9 million Ugandans using mobile money.

“The fundamental change is that more and more people are sending money using the phone,” said Vincent Kiyingi, Head of ICT Pride Microfinance. 

It’s also stimulating the economy. Farmers are paid to use Mobile Money when bringing crops to the market, an extra incentive.

“80 percent of Ugandans are farmers,” said Kiyingi, “so if you can help farmers with more money, you’ve helped all of Uganda.”

That sounds like a good future to me.