Abstract
Monetary integration has been on the West African political agenda for a long time. It has been regarded as an important development strategy by for instance the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) where 15 states are organized. Eight ECOWAS countries have a monetary co-operation through the Franc Zone, which is a unique post-colonial relation between France and former French colonies. In West Africa the Zone is organized in Union Économic et Monetaire Ouest Africaine (UEMOA). In 2000, the non-UEMOA countries in the ECOWAS signed a treaty which established the Second Monetary Zone (SMZ). The aim is to fuse the Franc Zone in the UEMOA and the SMZ into a common monetary zone within the framework of the ECOWAS. However, there are several obstacles to the realization of this initiative.
The research question is: How can the process of developing a common West African currency be explained and what are the main obstacles to its development?
In order to respond to this question, I employ three so-called approaches to New Regionalism: the World Order Approach (WOA), the New Regionalism Approach (NRA) and the New Regionalisms/New Realist Approach (NR/NRA).
First, the analysis shows the existence of a diverse set of ideas and visions towards the common currency initiative, both among external and regional, state and non-state actors. There exist at least two formal West African regionalisms, spearheaded by the ECOWAS and the UEMOA. These actors need to co-ordinate their integrative strategies in order to realize the initiative. Recently, external actors as the European Union (EU) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have supported the initiative.
Second, the analysis reveals the importance of regional uniqueness. Two aspects of the regional context are the second economy; and conflicts and regional instability. The existence of the second economy and the non-state actors in the region are central, because the informal economy both initiated and complicated the common currency initiative. In order to succeed in the initiative, the second economy and the already existing trading networks in the region have to be taken into appropriate consideration. Regional conflicts as the ones in Côte d Ivoire and Liberia have wide-reaching implications for the region and complicate the formal regionalization initiative.
Last, the use of European models of integration could be reduced. Both the initiative and the studies of it need a closer link to the African reality. In order to be a serious step towards development, the common currency initiative needs endeavored actors and strategies adapted to a West African context.