ECOWAS: BCEAO prepares the evolution of cross-border payments

Since the creation of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU), the BCEAO has been modernizing its payment systems for its eight countries sharing the CFA franc. The issue is taking on a new dimension as ECOWAS, which brings together fifteen countries with different currencies (naira, cedi, CFA franc), seeks to streamline its intra-regional trade, in the wake of the African Continental Free Trade Area. It is in this context that Massi Lawson, Deputy Director of Systems and Payment Means at the BCEAO, presented this strategy during a seminar for WAEMU journalists, held on July 20 and 21, 2026, in Dakar. According to him, the modernization aims for "instant, secure and accessible" transactions within the Union, before extending "to the scale of ECOWAS and the African continent." For exporting companies, West African migrants transferring funds to their families, and cross-border trade SMEs, broader interoperability would reduce costs and delays, which are currently often dependent on international correspondent banks. This announcement nevertheless remains declarative: no schedule, budget or technical partner has been specified, and the link with Afreximbank's pan-African PAPSS system is not mentioned. It remains to be seen whether the BCEAO will build its own gateway or rely on existing continental infrastructures.