Quartz Africa questions in particular the consequences of the cryptocurrency projects in Ghana and Nigeria, which could shower the hope of a common currency in West Africa. Faced with the emergence of digital currency projects, the Eco is struggling to seduce.

In West Africa, eight currencies are currently in circulation in fifteen countries, details Quartz Africa. Seven French-speaking countries and Guinea-Bissau use the CFA franc. The other seven each have their own motto. The project of a single currency, the Eco, repeatedly postponed, is still waiting. The Eco has certain advantages for the member states of the Community of West African States (ECOWAS). Interviewed by the Quartz Africa media, Clément Gbegnon, former risk manager at the West African Development Bank (BOAD), established in Togo, agrees: “There is currently a strong desire in French-speaking West Africa to get rid of the CFA franc, which is considered a colonial relic”. But some of the states concerned are instead focusing on putting their own virtual currency into circulation. For the moment, the Eco project remains on stand-by.