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Accepted Paper:
The Eco and its uncertain future in West Africa
Okey Ndubeueze Chibuike Uche (Leiden University)
Paper long abstract:
ECOWAS member countries have been negotiating for common single currency for over 30 years. Practically, theses negotiations has been between the 'French' West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) bloc that uses the CFA franc currency as common currency and the 'English' West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ) bloc that still uses its respective different national currencies (Naire, Cedi, Liberian Dollar, Leone, Dalasi). Proponents, believe that a functional single currency for ECOWAS region will not only facilitate trade, payment and lower transaction costs amongst its 400 million people but will especially provide a more robust resistance to intermittent external international monetary shocks and disruptions. Its original planned launch date of January 1st 2004 has been postponed repeatedly (to 2005, 2010, 2014 and 2020) largely due to the inability of member states to meet up with the convergence criteria set out as precondition for establishing the common currency monetary union and qualifying for membership.
However, the sudden and unilateral announcement by France and the WAEMU bloc in December 2019 to retire the CFA franc in 2020 and replaced it with a new currency - called the Eco, (which will still be pegged to the Euro and guaranteed by France) can only make sense when it is conceived as a mutually beneficial political move. The symbolic planned scraping of the CFA franc for the Eco may be seen as efforts being made by governments of CFA franc monetary zone to shed its colonial vestiges from France and amongst other political elections interests serve to calm the current anti-french sentiment on the rise in 'french' West Africa. The swift rejection and strong condemnation of the move by the WAMZ bloc may have significantly compromise the future and prospect of Eco as the ECOWAS regional bloc single currency.
This paper explores the emerging contestations between the two blocs over the issue of adopting single common currency as a new arena for colonial scramble of West Africa between France and post-Brexit Britain. While France is seeking to reposition, consolidate and possibly expand its influence and economic interest in West Africa, it is clear that pro-Brexit government in Britain is desperately betting its future on re-energising and increasing economic and political ties with Commonwealth member states of which includes the WAMZ bloc within ECOWAS.
Disciplinary trends in Africa: economics, finance studies, business studies [from ASCL, inputs from EUR-RSM, AERC, and Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ebonyi State Nigeria]
Session 1