Dr. Olorunsola Olowofeso, the Director-General of the West African Monetary Zone,WAMZ, has stated that the expectation for an ECOWAS Single Currency by 2027 is no longer realistic.
Oluwafeso, speaking to the News men in Abuja on Monday, highlighted the challenges facing WAMZ in achieving a single currency. He attributed these challenges to the inability of member states to meet all the required criteria. His comments came after the 48th meeting of the Committee of Governors of the Central Banks of the WAMZ member-states held in Abuja.
Oluwafeso noted that it’s unlikely for any member state to satisfy all four primary convergence criteria consistently between 2024 and 2026. He pointed out that the pursuit of a single currency will take longer due to significant declines in convergence indicators. As of June 2023, none of the member states met all four primary convergence criteria. The overall performance score for the zone dropped to 29.2%, compared to 41.7% in the same period in 2022, indicating a significant decline in performance.
The medium-term projections indicate that none of the WAMZ member-states will meet all the primary convergence criteria consistently until 2027, as stated by Oluwafeso. This projection aligns with the ECOWAS Single Currency Roadmap’s convergence phase.
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Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Wale Edun, emphasized Nigeria’s commitment to achieving WAMZ objectives. He expressed confidence in Nigeria’s ability to contribute to realizing the WAMZ ambition, highlighting the need for collaborative efforts among member states to strengthen and enhance the zone’s economies.
The WAMZ, established in 2000 within ECOWAS, consists of six countries: Nigeria, the Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. Their collective goal is to foster economic integration and monetary cooperation within the region.
At its 55th ordinary session in July 2019, the 15-member regional group of ECOWAS agreed to launch the Eco currency in January 2020. While eight predominantly francophone countries, including Benin, Burkina Faso, Guinea-Bissau, Portuguese-speaking, Ivory Coast, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo, announced in December 2019 their intention to transition from the CFA Franc to the Eco, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Ghana, Liberia, and Gambia, all English-speaking countries, along with Guinea, a francophone nation, rejected the adoption of the Eco.
The former President Muhammadu Buhari-led government had advocated for extending the launch date. Nigeria’s stance on the Eco currency was that the majority of the countries had not met the convergence criteria, as stated by the federal government at that time.
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