Paris (AFP)

French President Emmanuel Macron assured Thursday that the delicate subject of the future of the CFA franc could be discussed "in a peaceful way" and "without taboo", while the West African countries have confirmed their intention to provide a common currency.

"This is a subject that we must be able to open and that we have decided to open together with our African partners, in a peaceful way, without symbol worship, without taboos or totems," Macron told the meeting. The result of a debate at the Elysee Palace with 400 representatives of African diasporas in France, attended by Ghana's President Nana Akufo-Addo.

"I am attached to the fact that there is a success for the regional integration of ECOWAS," said the French president to his Ghanaian counterpart, on an official visit to Paris.

The CFA franc "has a utility", insisted the French president. "We must keep the stability that it brings but we must allow the entire region to fully integrate into an integrated monetary area."

The 15 members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) - including Ghana - have agreed in late June for the adoption by 2020 of a single currency - the eco - which would spell the end of the CFA franc in this region.

"There are challenges in this project but I think it is a model." The development of Europe had a huge impact on the standard of living of Europeans and one of the key pillars of this project was the single currency, "said Akufo-Addo.

At present, eight ECOWAS countries use the CFA franc, while seven other countries use so many currencies that are not convertible between them.

Established in 1945, about fifteen years before the independence of the French colonies, the value of the CFA franc is now indexed to the euro (1 euro = 655.96 CFA francs) which keeps the African economies in dependence European monetary policy, a situation regularly labeled as "neo-colonialism".

African states must also deposit 50% of their reserves in France. In return, their unlimited convertibility with the euro gives them international credibility.

© 2019 AFP