1. Africa steps away from French treasury

Francophone African nations have for decades left the management of their foreign exchange reserves to the French treasury, even though they gained independence from France years ago. Benin’s president, Patrice Talon, says the countries now want control over their currency. The reserves will be withdrawn from the French central bank, he told Radio France Internationale. In future, the Central Bank of West African States based in Senegal will hold reserves for Benin, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo. The CFA franc is pegged to the euro, and its convertibility is guaranteed by France...

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