WAMU: members, institutions and common monetary policy

What is the WAMU?

The WAMU (West African Monetary Union) is the union of eight states that share a single currency, the West African CFA franc (XOF), issued by a common central bank, the BCEAO. It rests on a treaty signed in 1962 and then replaced by that of 14 November 1973, and it predates the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU), established in 1994 by a separate treaty.

History and treaties of the WAMU

The original treaty was signed on 12 May 1962 and entered into force on 1 November 1962. Togo acceded in December 1963. Mauritania withdrew from the Union and from the franc zone on 30 May 1973, and the new treaty followed in November of the same year.

Mali signed its accession agreement on 17 February 1984, and that of Guinea-Bissau entered into force on 2 May 1997. The headquarters of the central bank was transferred from Paris to Dakar in 1978, then inaugurated in 1979. An institutional reform took effect on 1 April 2010.

How the WAMU works: institutions and common currency

The Union is run by the Conference of Heads of State and by the Council of Ministers, which brings together the finance ministers of the member states. It held three ordinary sessions in 2026, one of them in Ouagadougou on 3 July. Aboubakar Nacanabo, the Burkinabè Minister of Economy and Finance, chairs it.

The common institutions are the BCEAO, the Banking Commission, the Financial Markets Authority and the BOAD. The CFA franc has been pegged to the euro at a fixed parity since 1 January 1999. In December 2019, the states of the Union and France announced that the parity would be maintained and the operations account abolished. This currency remains distinct from the Central African CFA franc (XAF).

Monetary policy in the WAMU

The Monetary Policy Committee of the BCEAO, which met for the first time on 14 September 2010, sets monetary policy for the whole Union. At its meeting of 9 September 2026, it kept the minimum bid rate for tenders at 3.00%, the marginal lending facility rate at 5.00% and the reserve requirement ratio at 3.00%. These levels have been in force since 16 March 2026.

According to the BCEAO, inflation in the Union stood at 0.4% in the second quarter of 2026, and bank credit to the private sector grew by 6.6% at the end of June 2026.

The eight WAMU members and their markets

The Union has eight states: Benin, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast (Côte d'Ivoire), Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo. National Treasuries finance their debt through bills and bonds issued on a regional government securities market, and companies raise capital on the BRVM.

A Financial Stability Fund, established in 2012, was made operational by a decision of the Council of Ministers of 3 July 2026. It provides emergency support to states exposed to a risk of default on their government securities, for short-term needs repayable within five years at most. Its initial amount is FCFA 383 billion.