The ECO

By: Numo Blafo III

To me the issue of a single currency for the sub-region is a laudable idea. It is a system that has been tried and tested, and it has stood the test of time and succeeded in all its spheres of operation.
There are so many glaring examples around us. The CFA Franks is been used by our Francophone neighbors and we who travel or do business in between these countries can attest to its viability and how easy it ones movement and transactions. In just a few years that the Euro was put into circulation in Europe, we can all see the inroads it has made against the dollar. So, with this track record of a single currency for a group of nations, why should its implementation in our side of the world be a headache for our leaders?
In my opinion, political leanings and interested agents involved in individual economies, prevents their collective conscience to act sensibly for the development of the common good.
There is also the mistrust between individual leaders created by regimes that have evolved ideologies handed down from progenitors through history with certain political entities being structured around families that have perpetuated themselves in the ruling class.
All that I am saying is, so much happened during the struggle to liberate Africa and some head of states aligned themselves with certain powers and were used in the perpetration of atrocities in other countries. Therefore, it is very difficult for our current leaders most of whom have evolved from some of these past regimes to trust each other.
In view of this, if it is not implemented at the proposed time, I will have doubts if its discussions will bear any fruits in future.