K'Mali (Kokstad Money) is an innovative complementary currency or local system of mutual credit for community exchange that functions alongside the national currency (Rand) with the aim to improve trade stability, economic growth and help support local well-being and sustainable selfdetermination in the community of Kokstad.

K'Mali is a local community currency that is so far backed by the productivity of over 115 local Kokstad businesses. K'Mali functions like a loyalty voucher for local business, increasing their cash liquidity. Because it is usually spent in combination with the national currency, it helps move the Rand around
Kokstad and this stabilises the market. Kokstad's KEN members (K'Mali Exchange Network members) range from big businesses to small businesses, to home industries and are largely representative of the
service sector, retail and local production.

There is no Rand cost to join the K'Mali Exchange Network.  To be eligible to be a member of KEN you need to provide goods and services wanted by the community of Kokstad and find four other legitimate businesses to back your business. K'Mali represents a small loan (mutual credit) you are getting in the form of goods and services that other members of the Network provide.

Each KEN member receives and effectively brings 500 K'Mali of value into local circulation for trade (equivalent to R500 in value). This money represents new wealth generated that cannot 'leak' out of Kokstad. Businesses must pay back this 'credit' by accepting and maintaining a balance of 500 K'Mali for their own goods and services that they provide. The more trade you do, the more K'Mali flows through
your business along with national currency.

K'Mali is real money ' 10 K'Mali = 10 Rand ' the only difference is that K'Mali cannot be banked or used out of Kokstad. K'Mali notes are denominated in 5, 10, 20, and 50 value. Chances of the counterfeiting K'Mali is very small as chance of being caught is considerably higher. People within KEN are not likely to undermine the system and it is rare that people spend large amounts of K'Mali in a short while within the
KEN network and people who do spend large amounts into the system without having earned them first are easily detected.

Security features include:

• K'Mali logo watermark
• Foil Seal
• Unique voucher number
• Embossed Image
• Expiry date (a date to audit and renew the notes)

The measurable success of K'Mali in years to come will be the role that it will play in making people identify Kokstad as a place where the local economy matters. K'Mali may in the future be used to pay for certain public utilities, rental, school/kindergarten fees, local rates and taxes, enable micro-credit to be offered for business development, utilise a digital payment platform, be used to fund large community
improvement projects, monthly markets and enable general consumers and tourists to swop national currency into local currency to capture wealth locally and ensure continued support for local business, much like a loyalty reward system.

Each time a person uses K'Mali in a transaction for goods or services, they are in effect 'voting' for local business to succeed and ensuring that a proportion of profits generated will only be spent locally and thereby further helping to develop the community.

K'Mali was instigated in Kokstad by FLOW Africa and is an associated research project of the African Climate and Development Initiative (ACDI) of the University of Cape Town (UCT). It is being funded through the Technical and Management Support (TMS) Programme (managed by the National Treasury), which is part of the Development Cooperation Agenda between the Governments of South Africa and Flanders and part-funded and implemented by Meshfield. The findings of the FLOW Programme are intended to inform national policy around developing sustainable local economies.

If there are any questions please feel free to call the Kokstad FLOW Programme Coordinator, Piet Bosman, on Te1: 071 036 1408
kmali@fl owafrica.org