About
Establishment and Mission
The West African Monetary Institute (WAMI/Institute) was set up in Accra, Ghana, in January 2001 and began operations in March 2001. The Institute is to undertake technical preparations for the establishment of a common West African Central Bank and the launching of a single currency for the West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ/Zone). To minimize the effects of asymmetric shocks, a monetary union requires member countries to converge to certain quantitative and qualitative benchmarks. Thus, aside the monitoring of quantitative convergence criteria, the mandate of the Institute has been expanded over the years to include taking measures that will facilitate trade integration, financial sector integration, payments system development and statistical harmonization. In fulfilment of its mandate, therefore, the Institute currently conducts bi-annual onsite and monthly offsite multilateral surveillance missions to monitor Member States’ compliance with both the quantitative and qualitative benchmarks.
The West African Monetary Zone
The Heads of State of five countries in West Africa, as part of the fast-track approach to integration, decided in Accra, Ghana, April 20, 2000 to establish a second monetary zone to be known as the West African Monetary Zone. These countries, namely The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Nigeria and Sierra Leone, signed the ‘Accra Declaration’ which defined the objectives of the Zone as well as, an action plan and institutional arrangements to ensure the speedy implementation of their decision.
However, in February 2010, Liberia acceded to the WAMZ Agreement and became a member of the WAMZ. It is envisaged that this Zone will be merged with the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) to form a single monetary zone in West Africa.
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