When a Currency Loses Its Dignity: A Lesson From Kano, by Zekeri Idakwo Laruba

In my many visits to the ancient city, I discovered that Kano never stops surprising you. As one of Nigeria’s biggest and oldest commercial hubs, it operates like a nation within a nation, with its own rhythm, identity, and deeply rooted traditions.

From its layered political dynamics to the influence of its revered yet controversial emir, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, Kano is a place where history and modernity constantly negotiate space. Yet the city’s true heartbeat lies in its commerce.

Markets hum from dawn to dusk, traders bargain with the straightforward honesty the state is known for, and food prices remain admirably cheaper than in many parts of the country. Even transportation, dominated by tricycles, is remarkably affordable.

But amid the familiar bustle, one thing hits you like a cold splash of water: the condition of the naira notes circulating in the city. These are not just worn-out notes but notes that are practically disintegrating. Torn edges, brownish surfaces, patched corners, stitched middles, fragile like old paper in a museum.

Notes that would cause arguments in Abuja or Lagos, or be rejected instantly in Port Harcourt, move effortlessly from hand to hand in Kano without anyone blinking. The people accept them, use them, and treat them as perfectly normal instruments of trade.

This strange tolerance is deeply tied to Kano’s cultural and commercial DNA. The city is unapologetically business-minded. Transactions happen rapidly, with no time for currency aesthetics. If a note still has a denomination on it, even if barely, it is still money.

I must confess, I love the straightforwardness of Kano traders and it reinforces this behaviour. They don’t inflate prices, they don’t complicate transactions, and they don’t waste time arguing about a wrinkled ₦50 note. The way they bought it is the way they sell it.

But as charming as this cultural peculiarity appears, it exposes a bigger problem. The Central Bank of Nigeria is failing at a basic responsibility. Currency management is one of the CBN’s simplest and oldest functions, mopping up unfit notes, replacing them with new ones, and ensuring banks do not push degraded notes back into circulation.

So why does Kano, one of Nigeria’s biggest commercial engines, look like a dumping ground for retired currency? The problem is systemic. Cash retrieval mechanisms are weak across the North-West. New notes do not flow into Kano with the frequency they do into Lagos or Abuja.

Banks often recirculate the same worn-out notes because customers rarely reject them. And perhaps most importantly, the cultural acceptance of damaged notes removes the pressure that would normally force the banking system to clean up the mess.

The result is an economy running on money that looks and feels unfit for national use. This is not merely a cosmetic issue. A tattered national currency undermines confidence, locally and internationally. It frustrates electronic terminals.

It encourages people to hoard good notes rather than deposit them, reducing financial inclusion. It devalues the psychological power of the naira at a time when Nigeria is desperately trying to rebuild economic stability. And when a state as large and influential as Kano is flooded with these notes, the ripple effect touches the entire country.

This should not be normal. The CBN needs to go back to basics and fix what is essentially a confidence problem. The solution is straightforward: mop up the damaged notes aggressively, push fresh currency into Kano’s commercial pipelines, partner with traders and unions to encourage the return of unfit notes, and enforce penalties for banks that continue issuing near-unusable currency.

A nationwide sensitisation, especially in states where worn notes are passively accepted, would also go a long way. Kano’s honesty in business, its cultural richness, and its commercial energy are qualities Nigeria can learn from. But no city, no matter how vibrant, should be expected to run on currency that looks like it survived a war.

If Nigeria is serious about restoring the dignity of the naira, the work must begin where commerce is strongest and cash moves fastest. And that place, undeniably, is Kano.

Zekeri Idakwo Laruba is the Assistant Editor Economic confidential. [email protected]