A French region offers an alternative currency for the euro, so what is the reason?
Not long after I arrived in Bayonne, France, I realized that this riverside town of narrow houses dotted with winding medieval alleyways was unlike any other in the Basque Country. /b> There are about 300,000 people living in the northern French Basque Country, while more than two million people live in the southern Spanish Basque Country. The inhabitants of the Spanish and French sides of the region have one language and culture. But other than the population, there are many differences between the Spanish and French sides of the region, including that you rarely see the Basque flag flying on the French side, in addition to the fact that the local foods that the region is famous for differ in taste and shape on the French side than on the Spanish side . I noticed that the vast majority of shop names, restaurant menus, and even road signs in the French Basque Country are written in French, not Basque, which is the local language of the region and is called Oscara. This is because the Basque language is not officially recognized in France, unlike in Spain. I felt that the features of French culture overwhelmed the streets of Bayonne. Dante Edem-Sanjurjo, a local resident of Bayonne, says: “Our national language is about to disappear in the French Basque Country, because all the people of the Basque Country speak French. Young people do not use the Basque language, although they learn it in public and private schools, and the people of the region are ashamed of Speaking in their local language in front of strangers, as if it had become their own language, and they did not want anyone to know it. In 2013, Idem-Sanjurjo and 12 volunteers introduced a currency for the region as an alternative to the euro. Their aim was to revive cultural identity, instill pride in the local language, and preserve monetary circulation within the French Basque Country by supporting local businesses. In 2018, the volume of financial transactions using the alternative currency, which they called "Jusko", amounted to the equivalent of one million euros, making it the most successful financial experience in Europe. Teenage taboos, hosted by Karima Kawah and edited by Mais Baqi. The episodes The end of the podcast Today, "Jusco" is the official currency accepted in 17 municipalities and 820 shops, companies and associations in the French Basque Country. The Yucal Moneta Foundation, headed by Idem-Sanjurjo, the institution responsible for the circulation and printing of yusco, says that residents of the region open two or three yusco accounts with the institution every day. The foundation encourages companies that deal in Yusco to use the local language alongside French. “We urge shopkeepers to learn some Basque words to use when greeting customers or to write as many signs as possible in Basque. And if the language spreads, Basques in public places youngsters will not be ashamed to use them. However, the idea of issuing a local currency to complement the national currency is not new. Juskal Moneta was inspired by the region of Kimgauer in Upper Bavaria, Germany, which introduced the Kimgauer in 2003. There are now between 10,000 and 15,000 altcoins circulating around the world, of which about 60 local currencies are accepted in France. . There are currencies in Europe that the population circulates in a very limited range, to the extent that some residents of the city may not know anything about them, such as the Brixton pound, which was issued by the city of Brixton, south of the British capital, London. Likewise, the "Bish" coin, which was introduced in Paris recently. There are many local currencies circulating in the Spanish Basque Country, but no currency has yet appeared comparable to the "Jusco" in terms of trading volume and transactions. Jusco became the first local currency in France to be available both physically and digitally. It introduced Yusco digital accounts in 2017, and since then the demand for them has increased. Edem-Sanjurjo says that the volume of the Yusco against the euro has reached 60,000 Yusco per month. This success has caught the attention of other societies in Europe looking to replicate this experience. However, Edem-Sanjurjo says that introducing a local currency alongside the national currency in the markets and convincing the public to deal with it was not easy at all. He adds: "Nobody knew anything about alternative currencies. They thought it would replace the national currency, just as the euro replaced the French franc and the Spanish peseta." However, the Yusco currency quickly became very popular, and became one of the most traded altcoins. Barely six months after its introduction, the currency became the most developed among the alternative currencies in France. In order to obtain Yusco currency, you first have to open an account with the "Juscal Moneta" foundation, pay a fee of at least 12 euros per year, and then choose an association within the territory to support it financially, such as a company, a children's football club or a children's school local language. And when converting from Euros to Yusco, the association you chose gets three percent of the amount generated after the conversion. But I chose to exchange from Euros to Yusco at the tourist office in Bayonne for a fee of two Euros. The clerk gave me a list of shops that deal in Pusco, along with a small dictionary of the Basque language. However, when I saw the Yusco coin, I was reminded of the money we use in amusement games, as I had never seen banknotes with a website address before. But this does not mean that Yusco is a fake currency. Rather, many measures have been taken to protect this currency from counterfeiting, such as the use of special ink that glows under ultraviolet rays and a metallic strip, in order to preserve its value as an alternative economic resource and enhance the benefits it brings to society. In one of the largest Basque-language schools in Bayonne, 19 out of 58 families pay tuition fees in Yusco. The proceeds of the IOSCO program, which may reach 1,000 euros annually, are spent on the purchase of books, stationery and healthy meals for students. The Yuskal Moneta Foundation has set up a system to encourage Yusco holders to deal with them or not convert them into other currencies, as it charges a five percent fee for every conversion from Yusco into euros. Edam Sanjurjo says: "84 percent of the companies that bought Yusco did not convert them into euros, but rather deal with other companies that accept Yusco in the region." And he adds: "In France and in the Basque Country we believe in the right to live and work in your hometown. Because we do not have large factories or universities in the province, we have created new activities so that the people of the province do not have to leave in search of work elsewhere." All of the Bayonne shop owners I spoke to said that the main reason they decided to do business with Beusco was the financial benefits it would bring to the province, such as supporting local merchants and achieving some form of social justice. One of them said that he liked the idea of using a local currency in the region because it provides an alternative system to the capitalist system and helps create a cohesive society. And I took advantage of my presence in the region to feel the pulse of society regarding the separation from France, which represents one of the thorny issues that everyone tries to turn a blind eye to. I asked them, "Do any of you dream of Basque independence?" One of the shopkeepers said, "I don't support independence," and another replied, "I'm not ready for that." However, despite all these changes that occurred in the region after the introduction of Yusco as an alternative currency for circulation, life in the region is characterized by a French character, and it still needs more efforts to revive the Basque identity. "People have become more daring to use the Basque language in their daily lives. But this is not enough, we want people to cherish the Basque language and encourage expatriates to learn it and make sure to teach it to their children, as the people of Catalonia did. This goal will not It will happen overnight, but we will work hard to achieve it." You can read the original article on the BBC Travel website --------------------------------------- You can receive notifications of the most important topics after downloading the latest version of the BBC Arabic application on your mobile phone.
