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were not amused with the new currency Economic Community of West
being named the Eco, a name these African States (ECOWAS)
countries had settled on as the name of began with the establishment
the proposed currency of the bloc. of the regional body in May
Later, at meeting in Abuja for crunch 1975. This quest reflects in the
talks over the adoption of the eco, in objectives, as stated in article 2
order to establish a common position section 2h of the 1975 Treaty of
on the matter, particularly owing to Lagos, a treaty that establishes
concerns over the peg to the euro and the community. It states that
the Banque de France’s guaranteed the community shall ensure French President Macron meets with the G5 Sahel
convertibility of the currency, which “harmonization, required leaders in Bamako
requires collective pooling of foreign for the proper functioning
reserves, larger economies such as of the community and of the than just a currency model, for it forms
Nigeria and Ghana were reticent to go monetary policies of the member states.” part of France’s economic, political and
all in on the eco in the short term. The 15 member states that ratified the military/strategic cooperation.
The joint communique issued by the Treaty of Lagos are Benin, Burkina The other problem that the CFA has
WAMZ Convergence Council, minus Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, caused over the years is economic
Portuguese-speaking Cape Verde, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, distortions in West Africa, particularly,
condemned the unilateral WAEMU Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, between Francophone and Anglophone
decision to launch the eco as a rebrand Sierra Leone, and Togo. Cape Verde countries, resulting increased cross
of the CFA franc. joined the community in 1976 and boarder smuggling of goods, and money
Mauritania left in 2000, leaving the
Ghana had been the largest economy current membership still at 15 states. laundering through CFA which is
to signal its desire to join the eco, and The community is made up of English, pegged to the French franc, and now the
President Nana Akufo-Addo’s office French and Portuguese speaking euro.
in a statement had earlier said, that it countries. Besides, experts have always warned that
hoped the common currency would Analysts observe that since the Eco had French companies in particular profit
“help remove trade and monetary already been in the works — but for a from these “reserved hunting grounds”
barriers, reduce transaction costs, boost different, and larger, configuration of (chasse garde). African companies, on
economic activity and raise the living West African states—the fifteen West the other hand, have had, a difficult
standards of our people.” African countries were due to introduce time getting established in the market
However, Accra voiced staunch a new currency called the Eco this year— because of the competitive advantages
opposition to the retention of the Mr. Ouattara’s announcement last year, enjoyed by foreign firms.
euro peg and instead urged regional will almost certainly kill that project. The CFA franc has been firmly pegged to
authorities to adopt a “flexible exchange It is therefore not lost to a keen observer the French franc since 1948 (at the rate of
rate regime,” a demand likely to hinder that the confusion could be a deliberate FCFA50 = FFrl). It is readily convertible
its assimilation. and underhand objective by France into French francs at any time, making
The francophone Members of the West scuttle West African Monetary Zone it a convertible currency on the world
African Economic and Monetary Union (WAMZ)’s ECO currency. scene.
(also known by its French acronym, According to revelation in 2017 in a
(UEMOA) are Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte German economic newspaper Deutsche The structure of the CFA Franc Zone
D’Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Wirstschafts Nachrichten of a well- involves two different currencies, and
Senegal, and Togo who have a common kept secret, but one which in fact was two parallel institutional arrangements:
currency: the CFA franc inherited from generally suspected: France receives The West African monetary union
France, the colonial rulers of these 440 billion euros for supporting this UMOA (Union Mon6taire Ouest-
countries. currency and guaranteeing that it can be Africaine) which has seven member
The CFA franc survived the post converted into euros without any price countries, namely Benin, Burkina Faso,
C6te d’lvoire, Mall, Niger, Senegal and
independence collapse of monetary fluctuation, If true, this is a scandal of Togo. The joint central bank for these
harmonization, unlike the case monumental which neither the African countries is the Banque Centrale des
for Anglophone West Africa, they leaders nor the European Union can Etats de I’Afrique de I’Ouest (BCEAO).
established the West African Economic ignore.
and Monetary Union (WAEMU) in France holds a de facto veto on the The other is the Central African currency
1994—coinciding with the devaluation boards of the two central banks within union formed around the Banque des
of the CFA—with a single central bank the CFA franc zone. Since the reform Etats de I’Afrique Centrale (BEAC) as
BanqueCentrale des Etats de l’Afrique of the BCEAO in 2010, the conduct of the joint central bank. Its members
de l’Ouest (BCEAO) and a common monetary policy has been assigned to a are Equatorial Guinea (the only CFA
currency (CFA) which was fully monetary policy committee. country not formerly under French
convertible within the French franc Moreover, the cooperation between colonial rule), Gabon, Cameroon,
zone. France on the one hand and West and Congo, Chad and the Central African
The quest for monetary union within Central Africa on the other is more Republic.

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