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France à fric: the CFA zone in Africa and neocolonialism

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  • Ian Taylor

Abstract

Over 50 years after 1960’s ‘Year of Africa’, most of Francophone Africa continues to be embedded in a set of associations that fit very well with Kwame Nkrumah’s description of neocolonialism, where postcolonial states are de jure independent but in reality constrained through their economic systems so that policy is directed from outside. This article scrutinises the functioning of the Communauté Financière Africaine (CFA), considering the role the currency has in persistent underdevelopment in most of Francophone Africa. In doing so, the article identifies the CFA as the most blatant example of functioning neocolonialism in Africa today and a critical device that promotes dependency in large parts of the continent. Mainstream analyses of the technical aspects of the CFA have generally focused on the exchange rate and other related matters. However, while important, the real importance of the CFA franc should not be seen as purely economic, but also political.

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  • Ian Taylor, 2019. "France à fric: the CFA zone in Africa and neocolonialism," Third World Quarterly, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 40(6), pages 1064-1088, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:ctwqxx:v:40:y:2019:i:6:p:1064-1088
    DOI: 10.1080/01436597.2019.1585183
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    Cited by:

    1. Vibeke Bjornlund & Henning Bjornlund & André Rooyen, 2022. "Why food insecurity persists in sub-Saharan Africa: A review of existing evidence," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 14(4), pages 845-864, August.
    2. Noumba, Issidor & Noula, Armand Gilbert & Nguea, Stéphane Mbiankeu, 2022. "Do globalization and resource rents matter for human well-being? Evidence from African countries," International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 170(C), pages 49-65.
    3. Babatounde Ifred Paterne Zonon, 2021. "Regional Stock Exchange Development and Economic Growth in the Countries of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU)," Economies, MDPI, vol. 9(4), pages 1-19, November.

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