diff --git a/unix/mpconfigport.mk b/unix/mpconfigport.mk
index 4744172da..88bd749a7 100644
--- a/unix/mpconfigport.mk
+++ b/unix/mpconfigport.mk
@@ -26,3 +26,7 @@ MICROPY_PY_USSL = 1
 
 # jni module requires JVM/JNI
 MICROPY_PY_JNI = 0
+
+# Avoid using system libraries, use copies bundled with MicroPython
+# as submodules (currently affects only libffi).
+MICROPY_STANDALONE = 0