The Council of Ministers of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) met this Friday, December 20, at the headquarters of the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO).

Opening this last ordinary session of the Council of Ministers, for the year 2019, Romuald Wadagni, Beninese Minister of Economy and Finance, welcomed the "budgetary consolidation efforts" implemented in the different steps of the Union.

Thus, for the President of the Council of Ministers, these efforts "have resulted in a reduction of the Union's overall budget deficit to 2.7% of GDP against 3.3% during the same period the previous year" .

Also, Romuald Wadagni, he notes, "the economic growth rate of the Union amounted to 6.6% in September 2019, up 0.1 percentage point compared to the third quarter of 2018" .

Expressing his congratulations to the States "for the quality of the policies carried out", Romuald Wadagni also encouraged them "to maintain the course of bold reforms in order to meet the challenges of strengthening the basis of the Union's economies and improving of the well-being of the people".

The menu of the Council of Ministers meeting

For this last ordinary session of the meeting of the Council of Ministers, for the year 2019, a very busy menu is, in fact, submitted to the examination of the ministers.

Thus, under the BCEAO, the Council will examine the report on the economic and monetary situation in WAEMU as of September 30, 2019. An analysis of the economic and financial outlook for the Union will be made with a view to deciding on appropriate measures to sustainably consolidate growth in the Zone.

With regard to BOAD, the Council of Ministers will have to "decide on the updated financial outlook for 2019-2023 in order to decide on the levels of activity as well as the conditions for the Bank's intervention in the coming years".

Still within the framework of the agenda, the Council of Ministers will decide on the draft regulation on the organization, operation and management rules of the Regional Security Fund, the draft collective budget of the Union, and under of the year 2019, as well as the report on multilateral surveillance.

Finally, the last item on the agenda concerns the Regional Council for Public Savings and Financial Markets. CREPMF's draft budget for the 2020 financial year will thus be submitted to the Board for approval. Finally, the Council of Ministers will examine "the application of certain provisions of the Annex to the agreement on the composition, organization, operation and attributions of the CREPMF".