West African Monetary Union

WAMU (French: Union Monetaire Quest Africaine, UMOA) began operation in
1963 and was revised in 1973. The Union comprises seven French-speaking
African countries: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, Mali, Niger,
Senegal, and Togo which share a: (a) central bank (Banque Centrale des
Etats de l'Afrique de l'Ouest) which coordinates the Union's monetary and
credit policies; (b) common currency (CFA Franc) which is freely
convertible into the French Franc at a fixed parity; and (c) a common
regional development bank, the West African Development Bank. WAMU
headquarters are in Daka, Senegal.