Nigeria is studying the pros and cons of Eco, which has now become a craze among the West African countries since its introduction last week. It is still non- committal whether it would join the bandwagon. The statement issued by the Nigerian finance ministry says that the nation is actively considering the switch over to Eco by some of the west Africa countries and it the impact of the new currency. In a terse and equivocal statement, the spokesperson in the finance ministry said the country would take appropriate steps in due course of time. It may be noted that Ghana has already expressed its willingness to join Eco and became the ninth country to commit to the new currency, after its launch.
Ivorian president Alassane Ouattara announced recently in Abidjan in the presence of the French president Macron that all eight Francophone countries were pulling out of the CFA for a new currency. These countries will also withdraw their reserves from the French Central Bank. ECOWAS had earlier this year announced a 2020 date to introduce the common currency.
Eco countries would welcome Nigeria into the fold since it is the largest trading nation in Africa. Nigeria is always a late entrant to the groupings. Importantly, it was the last but one country which ratified the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). The initial resistance to join the grouping was on account of the resistance from the local industry groups, which feared that the country would be inundated by the goods manufactured in other African countries.
In the meantime, Ghana’s president Nana Akufo-Addo has indicated his country may join the West African currency that will replace the France-backed CFA franc. Though he did not set any time limit for joining, it is expected that it may come soon since it believes that Eco will help remove trade and monetary barriers. The only irritant for the country for joining is pegging of the new currency with Euro. He called for a flexible exchange rate system alluding that the Eco should be pegged with a basket of currencies to realise its true potential.
