s President Muhammadu Buhari has faulted the plans by ECOWAS to introduce a single currency for the Economic Community of West African States.

The Eco is the proposed name for the common currency that the West African Monetary Zone plans to introduce in the framework of ECOWAS.

But President Buhari while delivering Nigeria’s position at a virtual extraordinary meeting of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of the West African Monetary Zone on Tuesday said he has an uneasy feeling that the UEMOA Zone now wishes to take up the Eco in replacement for its CFA Franc ahead of the rest of the member states.

“I am informed that the French ministers have approved a bill to reform the CFA Franc and most, if not all of the UEMOA member states, have already passed legislations in their various parliaments to that effect.

“It is a matter of concern that a people with whom we wish to go into a union are taking these major steps without trusting us for discussion.

“We cannot ridicule ourselves by entering a union to disintegrate, potentially no sooner than we enter into it.

“We need to be clear and unequivocal about our position regarding this process. We have all staked so much in this project to leave things to mere expediencies and convenience.

“We must proceed with caution and comply with the agreed process of reaching our collective goal while treating each other with utmost respect.

“Without these, our ambitions for a strategic monetary union as an ECOWAS bloc could very well be in serious jeopardy,” he said.

While some experts have aligned with the president’s position over the matter, ECOWAS leaders have resolved to convene an enlarged meeting of the regional bloc on the single currency issue.

Buhari faults ECOWAS single currency

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