Director General of the West African Monetary Agency (WAMA), Boima S. Kamara Engages the Bretton Woods and Regional Institutions as the Launch of the Single Currency (ECO) for West Africa Draws Near (2027)

On the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)/World Bank (WB) Spring Meetings held in Washington, DC, the Director General (DG) of WAMA engaged relevant staff of the IMF, World Bank, and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in forging strategic partnership in the areas of capacity building; development and establishment of the ECOWAS Payments and Settlement System (EPSS) infrastructure — the Real Time Gross Settlement System (RTGS) and Immediate Payments System (IPS) for the ECOWAS bloc; strengthening regional integration with more emphasis on intra trade; exchange of data on cross border trade within ECOWAS; and establishment of a robust regional credit reference infrastructure, a Regional Credit Reference Bureau and Public Credit Registry with the view to enhance financial inclusion, transparency, and access to credit across ECOWAS member states by facilitating integrated and efficient credit reporting mechanisms

These engagements are part of a series of deliberate efforts by the Agency to fast-track activities towards meeting the 2027 deadline for the launch of the Single Currency, the ECO, as a medium of exchange for transactions within West Africa. Moreover, there was an understanding to forge regional integration and financial sector development,

and strengthening of the legal and regulatory regimes across the financial sectors of member states, as well as an agreement to collaborate in enhancing cross-border trade data and credit information-sharing mechanisms, especially between the IFC and WAMA. A practical and phased approach will help guide the process of coordination and collaboration.

Earlier in the year, WAMA had visited ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID), as part of her strategic drive to strengthen collaboration and foster cohesion with key partners in the ECOWAS region. During the engagement, EBID President, Dr. George A. Donkor, pledged unalloyed support to WAMA, voicing readiness to collaborate in evidence generation through research and statistics to foster informed macroeconomic analysis and policy-making throughout the ECOWAS sub-region. He underscored the importance of enduring partnerships in achieving shared objectives of economic integration and prosperity. By aligning both institutions’ efforts, Dr. Donkor believes the region will benefit from coordinated strategies that bolster development and growth. Expressing gratitude, the Director General of WAMA, Mr. Boima S. Kamara  acknowledged EBID’s significant contributions to infrastructure development and private-sector investment in ECOWAS. He committed to enhancing EBID’s visibility and underscored WAMA’s responsibility to promote understanding of the benefits of economic integration among key stakeholders.