Some African countries still keep 50% of their reserves in France, says former AU envoy

Arikana Chihombori- Quao, the immediate past African Union representative to the US, says some African countries still have 50 percent of their reserves with the Central Bank of France.

In December 1945, the CFA franc – originally the French African Colonial franc – was officially created  by a decree of General de Gaulle.

According to multiple policy papers, the colonial currency was born out of France’s need to foster economic integration among the colonies under its administration and control their resources, economic structures, and political systems.

That currency has been in use in Africa for over 70 years — and decades after most of the countries gained independence from France.

In 2019, President Emmanuel Macron of France, and the former French colonies entered an agreement to rename the common currency CFA Franc to the Eco, and will no longer keep 50% of their reserves in the French Treasury.

But in an interview with Osasu Igbinedion on The Osasu Show, Arikana Chihombori- Quao, who had initially brought the matter to the fore, said the policy change was only announced and not implemented.

“What I would like to say is that actions speak louder than words,” Chihombori- Quao said.

“Since President Macron made that proclamation I have not heard anything yet that says the Head of States are no longer required to deposit their reserves with the Central Bank of France.

“It is one thing to make that proclamation, and it is another thing to actualize it.

“Until I see it in writing until I know that the heads of states are no longer depositing their financial reserves with France, it is just words coming from President Macron.”

The former AU envoy said Africa must understand what happened at Berlin Conference, and we should not compete on the global scene as small entities.

“If we understand what happened in 1884, we would understand where we are today. If we understand what happened from November 1884 to February 1885, we would also understand what took place during those four months, it will also disgust us to say 136 years later, a strategy that was put in place to keep us forever defeated and dominated remains in place today.”

She said the continent has normalised the mistakes of the Berlin conference, asking how Africa expects Togo, Djibouti, and many other smaller states to negotiate favourably with the EU or the US.

The envoy called on African nations to come together to what it was before 1884.