ECOWAS: the launch of the ECO confirmed for 2027

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is moving forward with its plan to create a single currency. Meeting on July 19, 2026, in Freetown, Sierra Leone, the heads of state and government from the twelve member countries reaffirmed their “strong commitment” to the launch of the ECO in 2027.

According to the final communiqué of the summit, the ECO is presented as “an essential tool for deepening regional economic integration and promoting sustainable, resilient, and inclusive growth” within the community space.

However, the Conference opted for a gradual approach. The launch of the single currency will begin with states that meet the economic convergence criteria set by ECOWAS and are ready to integrate into the mechanism. Countries that do not yet meet these requirements will receive support to join the project at a later stage.

Consultations Ongoing

To prepare for the introduction of the ECO, ECOWAS states that “high-level consultations” are ongoing with the governors of the central banks of member states. These discussions aim to reach a consensus on the technical and institutional issues that remain to be resolved before the 2027 deadline.

West African leaders also welcomed the registration of the “ECO” trademark with the African Organization for Intellectual Property (OAPI). They asked the ECOWAS Commission to take the necessary steps to protect this name with other regional and international organizations.

Guinea Joins the Task Force

The summit also approved Guinea’s request to join the presidential task force responsible for the single currency program. The ECOWAS Commission has been instructed to organize a meeting of this body before the ordinary summit in December 2026, in collaboration with the president of Côte d’Ivoire, the only remaining active member of this Task Force.

Furthermore, the Commission and the West African Monetary Agency (WAMA) will need to intensify discussions with central banks to submit consensus proposals on outstanding issues.

The single currency project is now supported by the twelve ECOWAS member states, following the official withdrawal of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger in January 2025. Despite this new configuration, the regional organization reaffirms its commitment to continue implementing the ECO, which it considers a major step in West African economic integration.