A rebel-held Congolese city uses damaged banknotes due to a cash shortage

BUKAVU, Congo (AP) — In the city of Bukavu in eastern Congo, Alain Mukumiro argues in a small wooden hut with a shopkeeper who refuses to take his money.

Like many in the rebel-controlled city, Mukumiro is using older, hole-punched banknotes that have been patched up and put back into circulation because of a shortage of new and intact bills.

“All my money has serial numbers, but they refuse it,” Mukumiro said, upset about his ordeal.

Mukumiro, a fridge technician, said his family faces yet another night without food, like many in Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu province.

The Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group captured the city in February following an escalation of fighting between the insurgents and Congolese forces in the country's mineral-rich east. Congolese authorities closed the city’s banks as the conflict intensified, leading to a shortage of cash in the region.

The perforated notes appear to be old bills that the banks intended to destroy to take them out of circulation. It's unclear how they went back onto the market, but residents suspect they were stolen from bank buildings during the rebel takeover.

The older bills exchange for new ones at a rate of about 10-to-1, said Ruboneka Mirindi Innocent, one of several local residents who now work on the black market as money-changers.

“We keep these banknotes because we don’t know what else to do, it’s just to help each other out,” he said.

The fighting earlier this year worsened what was already one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises, with around 7 million people displaced and more towns and cities falling under the control of the rebels.

Banks have remained closed in Bukavu and and other key cities in the region, such as Goma, preventing the cities' residents from accessing cash. That has made life difficult in Bukavu, which once was booming with economic activity.

Having both intact and patched up notes in circulation at the same time has resulted in confusion and tensions between businesses and customers.

“It’s a real headache because some sellers accept them and others don’t,” said Mukumiro, 36. The father-of-three and his family are running out of ideas to cope as businesses decline the hole-punched banknotes — the only bills he has left.

Zihalirwa Rutchababisha, who owns a repair equipment business, said he does not accept the busted banknotes to avoid any loss.

“We are also facing the same situation as them,” Rutchababisha said about his customers caught up in the situation. “If I take them, I won’t be able to use them to purchase supplies and that would put me at a loss.”

Rutchababisha's $120 weekly profit last year has already plummeted to $20 a week under the M23, mainly as a result of dwindling sales.

In the rebel-held territories including Bukavu, several state employees once paid in cash say they now get paid via online transfers.

But this solves the problem for a select few. The state employees only account for about 2% of Bukavu’s population of over 1.3 million. Most of the city’s residents work in the informal sector and are paid in cash.

David Kyanga, a professor of economics at Bukavu’s Higher Institute of Commerce, said the only solution is for the M23-controlled cities to adopt the defective banknotes as valid means of payment in the absence of cash supplies from Congolese banking authorities.

The M23 could calm tensions by informing people that the hole-punched banknotes are valid, he said.

Last week, Patrick Busu Bwasingwi Nshombo, the M23-appointed governor of South Kivu province, asked residents to exchange their perforated notes in one of the banks the rebels opened.

But Nshombo quickly suspended the operation days later, saying the bank agents were overwhelmed by the load of banknotes brought forward to be changed.

Congo's government spokesperson in Kinshasa Patrick Muyaya said Thursday that the authorities will not send banknotes or reopen banks in rebel-held territories like Bukavu.

“No bank can open its doors in a situation of insecurity like what is happening in areas occupied by the M23,” Muyaya said at a press conference.

He questioned how banks could work with M23 when it faces U.S. Treasury sanctions.

“We don’t know who will save us,” Mukumiro said. “The government in Kinshasa turns a blind eye, and the liberators also watch the situation without taking action.”

Banchereau reported from Dakar, Senegal. Jean-Yves Kamale in Kinshasa, Congo contributed to this report.

For more on Africa and development: https://apnews.com/hub/africa-pulse

The Associated Press receives financial support for global health and development coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

A close-up of perforated notes, which are rejected in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Friday, Aug 29, 2025. (AP Photo)

Vendors are seen at a market in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Friday, Aug 29, 2025. (AP Photo)

A currency exchanger buys perforated notes that are rejected by people in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Friday, Aug 29, 2025. (AP Photo)

A customer pays for a service with perforated notes, which are rejected in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Friday, Aug 29, 2025. (AP Photo)

A close-up of perforated notes, which are rejected in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Friday, Aug 29, 2025. (AP Photo)

NEW DELHI (AP) — With a massive population, a rapidly growing economy and already the global powerbroker in cricket, India is preparing to expand its influence in international sport.

The 2030 Commonwealth Games are already locked in for Ahmedabad, and there's high expectations for India's bid to host the 2036 Olympics.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has envisioned a developed India by 2047, and the government is focused on improving living standards, transport infrastructure, education and becoming a global hub for tech and innovation.

And that's the bedrock of India’s aspirations for the Olympics and beyond.

“India today reflects a confident and aspirational mindset, ready to lead and shape the future of global sport,” Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya, Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports, said in an interview with The Associated Press. “Our growing capability to host major international sporting events is a testament to how far we've progressed.

“At the same time, our athletes continue to make the nation proud, signaling the steady rise of India as a formidable sporting force.”

On Thursday, Mandaviya was due to preside over a national sports conclave in Delhi, where India’s preparedness for the 2026 Asian Games and Commonweath Games, as well as the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, will be measured.

Discussion topics also included compliance to the National Sports Governance Act that was introduced last year, pertaining to transparency of national sports federations, and the hosting of and participation in international events.

So far in 2026, India has hosted three high-profile cricket events — the men’s Twenty20 World Cup, the Women’s Premier League and currently the Indian Premier League, one of the richest and most followed franchise leagues in international sport.

New Delhi is hosting the badminton world championships, Bhubaneshwar is slated to host a World Athletics Continental Tour meet and Ahmedabad is set to host the Asian weightlifting championships.

Indian authorities are also considering ways of bringing Formula 1 back to the country for the first time since 2013. Influential sports officials have already helped get cricket back into the Olympics for Los Angeles in 2028.

Outside of cricket, the Commonwealth Games are the biggest barometer for India’s developing sport story.

New Delhi hosted the Asian Games in 1982 and 1951, and also the 2010 Commonwealth Games that was fraught with logistics problems. Long delays in getting facilities ready and a list of scandals overshadowed the event.

Indian officials expect Ahmedabad to put those problems into the distant past. The Sardar Patel Sports Enclave is marked as a key hub for the 2030 Games, which bring together thousands of athletes from 74 Commonwealth nations and territories.

The complex also houses the biggest cricket stadium in the world – the Narendra Modi Stadium – and it can be optimized to host different sports.

But this is a tale growing beyond infrastructure alone. There is a genuine push toward attaining success on the field as well, and sustained efforts have been made over the past decade to develop a robust sports ecosystem.

There are more than fifteen professional leagues across sports actively nurturing talent and creating future opportunities.

The Sports Authority of India has established sports-specific centers of excellence across the country, designed to provide world-class infrastructure and scientific training with the aim of producing Olympic and international medalists.

The results are showing – India recorded its best-ever showing at the Asian Games with 107 medals in the last edition staged in 2023. It won the Thomas Cup (badminton) in 2022, a first squash World Cup title, earned 29 medals — including seven gold — at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris, and 20 medals at the World Boxing Cup finals.

Olympic and world champion javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra is among the standout individual performers.

Sports backers say the individual success stories matter in sending out a message of fitness and participation through society.

Hari Ranjan Rao, Sports Secretary, Government of India, said while the infrastructure is put in place, “we are also working on our messaging.”

The Khelo India — or Play India — program has grown since 2018 at the youth and university level, winter and para games, beach and water sports, and even tribal games.

“The aim is to draw out the masses into an active lifestyle,” Rao said, “As well as into participation.”

And with extra participation, India is hoping for greater success.

“As we prepare to host the 2030 Commonwealth Games and advance our bid for the 2036 Olympic Games, India stands ready to take center stage,” Mandaviya said. “We are determined to emerge as a global sporting powerhouse, both in producing champions and in hosting world class events.”

AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports

FILE - People search in the rubble after authorities demolished various structures near the Narendra Modi stadium, seen behind, as part of the preparations for the 2030 Commonwealth Games in Ahmedabad, India, Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki,File)

FILE - From left, Olympic Bronze medallist in wrestling Bajarng Punia, Olympic Bronze medallists in boxing, Lovlina Borgohain, Olympic Gold medallist in javelin throw Neeraj Chopra, Olympic Silver medallist in wrestling Ravi Dahiya and captain of Indian men's hockey team who won bronze medal, Manpreet Singh at Tokyo Olympic games, stand for a photographs during a felicitation function in New Delhi, India, Monday, Aug. 9 2021. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup.File)

Gujarat Titans' Arshad Khan bowls a delivery during the Indian Premier League cricket match between Gujarat Titans and Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Ahmedabad, India, Thursday, April 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

Cheer leaders dance before the Indian Premier League cricket match between Gujarat Titans and Punjab Kings in Ahmedabad, India, Sunday, May 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)