The former sub-Saharan French colonies did not have to fight for their independence. De Gaulle, then President of France, granted it to them. These countries undertook immediately to dismantle the federal structure in which they were operating and erected trade barriers between them. Paradoxically, they kept the CFA as their common currency. They surrendered the management … [Read more...] about CFA Franc: a Colonial relic
devaluation
Sub-Saharan Africa on the Sidelines, A false economic dawn?
After the collapse of the Mobutu regime Zaire, now renamed the Democratic Republic of Congo, has been left stripped of resources, in spite of the mineral wealth being eyed covetously by foreign investors. Elsewhere, the International Monetary Fund's figures point to a significant improvement in sub-Saharan Africa. However, imposing structural adjustment, privatisation and … [Read more...] about Sub-Saharan Africa on the Sidelines, A false economic dawn?
Why the CFA franc must go
Sanou MBaye suggests that the price of maintaining links with France is too high FOURTEEN OF THE former West African French colonies use the CFA franc, whose exchange rate is pegged to the French franc, as a common currency. The CFA franc was created, in its initial form, in the 19th century to help France shape and control the economies of her colonies. The scheme was quite … [Read more...] about Why the CFA franc must go
Sanou MBaye suggests that the price of maintaining links with France is too high
FOURTEEN OF THE former West African French colonies use the CFA franc, whose exchange rate is pegged to the French franc, as a common currency. The CFA franc was created, in its initial form, in the 19th century to help France shape and control the economies of her colonies. The scheme was quite useful to France, which it helped to resist the tremors of the economic crises of … [Read more...] about Sanou MBaye suggests that the price of maintaining links with France is too high