Eco currency - Afrikan Heroes

It is not yet time for Eco currency — Ouattara

September 28, 2020

President of Cote d’Ivoire Alassane Ouattara

The president of Cote d’ivoire Allasane Ouattara has put paid to speculations on the planned regional currency, The Eco, saying that there’s still much work to be done before the dream is realised.

President Quattara singled out the covid-19 pandemic disruptions as being responsible for the delay. The planned new West African currency to replace the France-backed CFA franc this year according to him has been derailed by the coronavirus pandemic and its launch could now be up to five years away.

Last December, West Africa’s eight-nation monetary union announced it would sever some financial links with Paris and switch to the new currency, called the eco, by the end of 2020 while keeping it pegged to the euro.

But these ambitions have been thwarted as countries instead grapple with the economic fallout from the global pandemic. The International Monetary Fund expects Sub-Saharan Africa’s economy to contract 3.2% this year – its worst performance on record. According to President Ouattara the proposed Eco cannot be put in place now with the Covid-19 pandemic and its disruptions. Adding that talks on the Eco were held in Niger on Sept 7., where countries vowed to work on achieving the agreed criteria for the currency’s launch, including national budget deficits at or below 3% of gross domestic product.

“We think it will be difficult to get to a 3% deficit for two or three years, so personally I don’t see the eco’s arrival for three to five years,” he said.

He was speaking in a personal capacity and not on behalf of the currency union, which has not yet commented on a new timeframe for the currency’s launch.

Ivory Coast is the largest economy in the bloc, which includes Benin, Burkina Faso, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo – all former French colonies except Guinea-Bissau.

Ghana has said it would also want to adopt the eco, but has urged members of the currency union to ditch the planned euro peg.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Ghana Opposes Pegging the Eco Currency to the Euro

January 1, 2020

Ghana had warned that its determination to join the West African currency, The Eco which is backed by France and promoted by the UEMOA states is based on economic factors not politics, insisting that it will however, oppose the pegging of the Currency to the Euro.

President Nana Akufo-Addo indicated that “we, in Ghana, are determined to do whatever we can to enable us (to) join the Member States of UEMOA, soon, in the use of the eco, as, we believe, it will help remove trade and monetary barriers”, noting that Ghana opposed plans to keep the eco pegged to the euro, urging regional authorities to work quickly toward “adopting a flexible exchange rate regime”.

With Ghana’s adoption of the new currency, it will become the bloc’s largest economy, ahead of neighbour Ivory Coast even though it is not part of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) which is mostly made up of former French colonies that uses the CFA franc while Ghana has its own currency, the cedi, redominated few years ago.

Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara and French President Emmanuel Macron announced this month that West Africa’s monetary union had agreed to cut some financial links with Paris that have underpinned the region’s common currency since its creation soon after World War Two.

Under the deal, African countries in the bloc will not have to keep half of their reserves in the French Treasury and a French representative will no longer sit on the currency union’s board.

The countries due to change from the CFA franc to the eco are Benin, Burkina Faso, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo – all former French colonies except Guinea-Bissau.

The group is aiming to have the new currency up and running by the end of 2020.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

African Development Bank Endorses Eco Currency

With the French-speaking West Africa finally jettisoning CFA francs in favour of Eco, and Ghana announcing support for the new currency, the African Development Bank (AfDB) has indicated its support for Eco, the proposed single currency for the Economic Community of West African States(ECOWAS).

Akinwumi Adesina, president of AfDB was speaking on Tuesday after a visit to President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa in Aso Rock, Abuja.

“I think that at the end of the day the biggest thing to happen to Africa is the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). That free trade area itself is worth over $3.3 trillion in terms of trade,” he responded when asked if the African countries should adopt the single currency given the adoption by eight Francophone countries.

“Obviously been able to trade in various currencies, it’s not optimum to trade in so many currencies. So it makes common sense to have a unified currency and of course for that to even been achieved — the Eco, I support Eco greatly, I think it’s a great idea to do.

“Obviously, there are a number of convergence criteria that would have to be met and I am sure that our President is taking with other presidents to be sure that they can meet those criteria and the region can be fully integrated.”

Asked if the eco currency should be pegged against the Euro, the African Development Bank boss responded:

“the issue for us is going to be how to have a well-integrated monetary policy and fiscal policy within the region, that is the most important thing and then you figure out the rest later”.

“I am very encouraged with the progress of the heads of state on this particular issue and I am very confident that President Muhammadu Buhari will make even greater progress on that.”

On December 21, eight countries namely Benin, Burkina Faso, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo, announced that they would be changing from the CFA Franc to Eco through their union, West African Economic and Monetary Union.

The countries, which are all French colonies except Guinea-Bissau, severed financial links to France with the decision.

Ghana has also indicated an interest in switching its currency to Eco, however, it opposed pegging the currency against the euro.

Responding to the action, Zainab Ahmed, the minister of finance, budget and national planning, said the country is studying the situation and deciding the next course of action.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world

Ghana to Drop Cedi for the Eco Currency

December 29, 2019

Indications have emerged that Ghana will soon swap the cedi for the new single ECOWAS common currency, the eco when trading within the ECOWAS region.

According to the Ghanaian president, Ghana is determined to do whatever can be done enable it join the Member States of UEMOA, soon, in the use of the ECO.

Currently, Ghana drops its cedi for the CFA when trading with French west Africa but now its hoping to swap the cedi for eco instead.

On December 21, 2019, the President of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA), Alassane Ouattara, at a news conference with French President, Emmanuel Macron, in Ivory Coast made a declaration on the decision taken by eight (8) West African Member States of UEMOA to discontinue the use of the Financial Community of Africa (CFA) franc currency.

Ghana believes the adoption of a single currency market will help remove trade and monetary barriers, reduce transaction costs, boost economic activities and also raise living standards.

Therefore it is calling on other ECOWAS member states to expedite work towards implementing the single currency usage decision.

“Ghana urges the other Member States of ECOWAS to work rapidly towards implementing the decisions of the Authorities of ECOWAS, including adopting a flexible exchange rate regime, instituting a federal system for the ECOWAS Central Bank, and other related agreed convergence criteria, to ensure that we achieve the single currency objectives of ECOWAS, as soon as possible, for all Member States,” the stated read.

The Government of Ghana has taken notice of the recent declaration made on Saturday, 21st December, 2019, by the President of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA), His Excellency Alassane Ouattara, the President of the Republic of Cote d’Ivoire, on the decision taken by the eight (8) West African Member States of UEMOA to discontinue the use of the CFA Franc, in favour of the proposed, new common currency of ECOWAS, the ECO, beginning in 2020.

This is a welcome decision, which Ghana warmly applauds. It is good testimony to the importance that is being attached not only to the establishment of a monetary union, but also to the larger agenda of West African integration.

We, in Ghana, are determined to do whatever we can to enable us join the Member States of UEMOA, soon, in the use of the ECO, as, we believe, it will help remove trade and monetary barriers, reduce transaction costs, boost economic activity, and raise the living standards of our people.

Ghana urges the other Member States of ECOWAS to work rapidly towards implementing the decisions of the Authorities of ECOWAS, including adopting a flexible exchange rate regime, instituting a federal system for the ECOWAS Central Bank, and other related agreed convergence criteria, to ensure that we achieve the single currency objectives of ECOWAS, as soon as possible, for all Member States.

We have a historic opportunity to create a new reality for the peoples of ECOWAS, a reality of general prosperity and progress. So, let us seize it.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry