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Abstract

This work examines the 2019 project of the National Bank of Kyrgyz Republic (NBKR) that sought to use the voice of Akyn, an improvisational poet and singer, to introduce financial concepts to the public. Touching upon the various economic themes such as inflation, monetary policy, exchange rate, family budget as well as the role of the National Bank, the akyn represents, it can be argued, an intermediary figure who efficiently relays information between the official institutions and the general public.

Within the framework of current work, the author seeks to shed light on how NBKR effectively deploys traditional means of art form such as the recitation performed by akyn in order to increase public awareness on key economic concepts. Given that Kyrgyzstan has been combatting the problem of financial illiteracy and prevalent informality which, among other things, triggered massive anti-debt movements, it can be argued that the use of akyn presents a powerful means in educating the population about the financial system.

A particular emphasis will be placed upon the notion of trust and especially monetary trust examined in the discipline of economics. In particular, deploying the theory of the economy of conventions, a French school of thought that espouses an interdisciplinary approach in economics, the author seeks to demonstrate, on the example of Akyn and the BBKR project, how monetary relations go beyond what is portrayed by the present economic paradigm.