The 19th ordinary session of the leaders of the eight WAEMU countries with a common economic destiny, took place at the Palais des Congrès in Cotonou on Friday The conference was attended by the presidents of seven countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Mali, Senegal, Niger, Togo) and the Guinea-Bissau Minister of Foreign Affairs, representing its President. These meetings, which constitute a turning point in the process of sub-regional economic integration, allowed the renewal of the institution's bodies and especially the passing of the baton from the Beninese President, outgoing President-in-Office, Dr. Boni Yayi to his Ivorian counterpart Alassane Ouattara. The conference was marked by a satisfactory balance sheet report, with the institution's economic prospects presenting themselves under better auspices.

During the work, the Heads of State and Government examined the Commission's classic files and listened to the reports drawn up by the Union's major institutions, namely: the WAEMU Commission itself, the BCEAO, BOAD and the Regional Council for Public Savings and the Financial Market. These reports relate to the major projects of subregional integration implemented by WAEMU. These are agriculture and food security, projects relating to peace and security, the sustainable energy development initiative and the financing of the economy.

Basically, all these projects were launched in 2011, when the Head of State, Faure Gnassingbé presided over the destiny of the Conference of Heads of State and Government. President Faure Gnassingbé had the right vision in initiating and setting up high-level committees for the execution of these projects, with a view to the well-being of the populations.

The conference also looked at the case of the WAEMU Court of Justice, which is experiencing dysfunctions. Decisions have been taken to this effect to enable the institution to resume its normal functioning.

In addition, the Heads of State and Government welcomed the actions carried out in the financing of economies, through the implementation of the second phase of the process of strengthening the intervention capacities of banks and financial institutions and the promotion of credit information offices. They also appreciated the measures initiated by the BCEAO for the establishment of a support mechanism for the financing of SMEs/ SMIs. The Conference therefore called on the Community bodies and institutions to ensure rigorous follow-up to the new legal instruments on combating money laundering and the financing of terrorism.

Good prospects for the monetary and Community area

In his opening remarks, the President of Benin, outgoing President of waEMU, Dr. Boni Yayi, expressed his gratitude to his peers for their interest in revitalizing the Union. He noted that the life of the Community area had undergone political events marked mainly by presidential elections. For this, he once again expressed his congratulations to the Heads of State Faure Gnassingbé of Togo and Alassane Ouattara of Côte d'Ivoire for their re-election to the supreme office. The Beninese president praised the common sense that prevailed in Burkina Faso, allowing the presidential election to take place in peace with the election of President Roch Marc Christian Kaboré. However, Dr. Boni Yayi expressed the hope that these same deadlines that are looming on the horizon in Niger and Benin, will be a success for the strengthening of democracy within the WAEMU.

For his part, the President of the WAEMU Council of Ministers, Minister of Economy, Finance and Planning of Senegal, Mr. Amadou Ba, welcomed the performance recorded by the Union in recent years. Performances that, at the economic level, allowed the institution to have a growth rate of 6.6% in 2015 with a projection of 7.2% of the gross domestic product in 2016. He considered, however, that various challenges are at stake, including maintaining a stable and peaceful socio-political and security climate, youth employment, gender promotion and the training of human resources as well as the mobilization of capital for the financing of integrative projects.

Jules LEMOU

FINAL COMMUNIQUÉ OF THE 19th ORDINARY SESSION OF THE ASSEMBLY OF HEADS OF STATE AND GOVERNMENT OF THE WEST AFRICAN ECONOMIC AND MONETARY UNION

Under the chairmanship of His Excellency Dr. Boni Yayi, President of the Republic of Benin, current Chairman of the Conference of Heads of State and Government of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU), the Conference met in ordinary session in Cotonou, January 08, 2016.

The following were present:

– For the Republic of Benin, His Excellency Dr. Boni Yayi, President of the Republic;

– For Burkina Faso, His Excellency Roch Marc Christian Kaboré, President of Faso;

– For the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, His Excellency Alassane Ouattara, President of the Republic;

– For the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, His Excellency Mr. Artur Silva, Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation and Communities, representative of the Republic,

– For the Republic of Mali, His Excellency Mr. Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta, President of the Republic;

– For the Republic of Niger, His Excellency Sir, Issoufou Mahamadou, President of the Republic;

– For the Republic of Senegal, His Excellency Mr. Macky Sall, President of the Republic;

– For the Togolese Republic, His Excellency Faure Essozimna Gnassingbé, President of the Republic;

Also taking part in the work of this session were the Members of the WAEMU Statutory Council of Ministers, chaired by Mr. Amadou Ba, Minister of Economy, Finance and Planning of the Republic of Senegal, as well as:

– Mr Tiémoko Meyliet Koné, Governor of the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO);

– Mr. Christian Adovelande, President of the West African Development Bank (BOAD);

– Mr. Jeremias Antonio da Cruz Pereira, President of the Regional Council of Public Savings and Financial Markets (CREPMF)

The conference was also attended by the Presidents and members of Organs of the Union as well as those of subregional organizations, namely:

– Mr Malick Kamara N'Diaye, President of the WAEMU Court of Auditors;

– Mr. Janvier Yahouedeou, President of the WAEMU Inter-Parliamentary Committee;

– Mr. Jean-Baptiste Satchivi, President of the WAEMU Regional Consular Chamber;

– Mrs Bintou Coulibaly, President of the Labour and Social Dialogue Council (CTDS) of the WAEMU Member States;

– His Excellency Mr. Amadou Diop, Coordinator of the Group of Ambassadors of West Africa, Ambassador of the Republic of Senegal to the Kingdom of Belgium;

In addition, representatives of international organizations and WAEMU development partners attended the session:

– His Excellency Ambassador Mouhamadou Doudou Lo, OIC Representative;

– Mr. Serge N'guessan, Representative of the African Development Bank in the Togolese Republic;

– Mr. Thierno Bocar Tall, Chairman and CEO Saber.

At the political level, the conference welcomes the successful holding of presidential elections in Côte d'Ivoire, Togo and Burkina Faso.

The conference extends its warm congratulations to Their Excellencies Mr. Ouattara and Mr. Faure Essozimna Gnassingbé, on their brilliant re-election to the presidency of the League of Côte d'Ivoire and the Togolese Republic respectively.

The conference also expresses its warm congratulations to His Excellency Rock Marc Christian Kaboré, on his brilliant election as President of Faso.

The conference congratulates the actors of the Transition and the entire Burkinabe people for the maturity they have shown during this period.

With regard to the Malian crisis, the Heads of State and Government welcome the signing in Bamako of the Peace and Reconciliation Agreement in Mali.

They commend the Government of the Republic of Mali and the international mediation team, led by Algeria, for their efforts that led to the conclusion of the Agreement.

The Heads of State and Government strongly condemn the terrorist attack of 20 November 2015 against the Malian people and the attacks that took place around the world, in particular those perpetrated in Paris, Tunis and the Middle East.

They welcome the commitment of the Member States of the Union, friendly countries and the international community whose forces remain at the side of Malians for the stability of this country.

The Conference expresses its solidarity with the peoples of Mali and Niger, as well as those of other brotherly countries, who are facing terrorist attacks by armed groups. It condemns the attacks of the terrorist group Boko Haram against the populations of our area.

The Conference decides to further strengthen efforts in the fight against terrorism through border and cross-border cooperation, intelligence sharing and pooling of resources.

It asks the Bodies and Institutions of the Union to continue the implementation of the Peace and Security project, to ensure the tranquility necessary for the development of the sub-region.

Taking note of the results obtained in the framework of the second edition of the annual review of community reforms, policies, programmes and projects within the WAEMU, the Conference encourages the Bodies and Institutions to continue this exercise, with a view to consolidating the Union's pillar, for the well-being of the population.

With regard to the state of the Union's integration process, the Heads of State and Government discussed issues of common interest to WAEMU and ECOWAS. They appreciate the good coordination of the actions of the two institutions, through the regular holding of sessions of the Joint Technical Secretariat, with a view to the effective execution of Community projects and programmes.

The Conference welcomes the actions undertaken by the Union through the High Level Committees in charge of projects concerning energy, peace and security, food security and the financing of economies.

It welcomes the actions taken to improve the financing of the Union's economies, through the implementation of the second phase of the process of strengthening the intervention capacities of banks and financial institutions and the promotion of Credit Information Offices.

It urges those Member States which have not yet transposed into their domestic legal order the Uniform Law regulating  Credit Information Bureaus to do so diligently in order to allow the activities of these structures to start throughout the Community area.

The Conference appreciates the actions initiated by the Central Bank for the establishment of a support system for the financing of SMEs / SMIs. It invites all the actors concerned by the promotion of SMEs / SMIs to work for the achievement of the objectives of this device.

The Conference was informed of the revision of the texts in force in the Member States of the Union on the fight against money laundering and the financing of terrorism, in order to bring them into line with international standards. It calls on the Community bodies and institutions to ensure rigorous monitoring of the implementation of these new legal instruments.

The Heads of State and Government took note of the actions undertaken by the Central Bank to strengthen financial stability in the Union, in particular those aimed at setting up a mechanism for resolving banking crises. They encourage the Community Bodies and Institutions to complete this project.

The Heads of State and Government appreciate the actions taken to regulate the electronic money sector, with a view to better monitoring its actors and strengthening the confidence of the population in the use of this currency, which contributes significantly to improving financial inclusion in the Union.

The Conference was informed of the organisation in December 2015, by the Community Bodies and Institutions, of an international forum on risk capital, in partnership with the International Finance Corporation. It invites them to make every effort to ensure the success of this event in order to improve the financing of infrastructure projects and SMEs/SMIs.

It welcomes the recent satisfactory rating of BOAD by the international agencies Fitch and Moody's, which allows it to consider mobilizing resources in international financial markets with a view to strengthening its lending in the commercial sector.

It also welcomes BOAD's  accreditation to the Global Environment Facility as an approved entity for resource mobilization through the co-financing of environmental projects in the Union.

The Conference was informed of the progress of the study initiated, at its request, by the Commission, on the rationalization of the Organs of the Union.

It encourages the Commission to continue the diligent implementation of this project.

The Conference adopted an Additional Act on the regularisation of past management and the continuation of the activities of the Inter-Parliamentary Committee until the end of March 2016. This, while waiting to know the conclusions of the study and to appreciate the impact on the Bodies and activities of the Union.

The Conference also addressed the deep crisis that the WAEMU Court of Justice has been going through for almost two years.

The Conference took a decision on the basis of the information provided by the High-Level Committee set up by the WAEMU Heads of State on the settlement of this crisis and the Chairman of the Committee for the Review of the Texts of the WAEMU Court of Justice.

At the end of its deliberations on this item, the Conference adopted the Committee's proposals.

With regard to the renewal of mandates, the Heads of State decided to extend the mandate of all the Commissioners until the next Summit, at the end of which Niger will assume the presidency of the Commission.

For the maintenance of the Commissioners, appropriate measures will be taken.

The Conference expresses its satisfaction to the Chairperson of the Commission, the Governor of the Central Bank of West African States, the President of the West African Development Bank, the President of the Regional Council for Public Savings and Financial Markets, as well as to the staff of all WAEMU Bodies and Institutions, for the results obtained in the implementation of community programs and projects.

The Conference expresses its satisfaction to the Chairperson of the Commission, the Governor of the Central Bank of West African States, the President of the West African Development Bank, the Chairman of the Regional Council for Public Savings and Financial Markets, as well as to the staff of all WAEMU Bodies and Institutions, for the results obtained in the implementation of community programs and projects.

The Conference extends its warm congratulations to Dr Boni Yayi on his work as President-in-Office of the Union.

With regard to the current Presidency of the Union, the Conference unanimously elected His Excellency Alassane Ouattara, President of the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, as the new Current President of the WAEMU Assembly of Heads of State and Government.

The Heads of State and Government of Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo extend their condolences to the people of Benin on the death of President Mathieu Kérékou. They associate themselves with the tribute paid by the Beninese people to the illustrious deceased.

They express their deep thanks to His Excellency Dr. Boni Yayi, President of the Republic of Benin, and through him, to all the Beninese people, for the fraternal welcome extended to them, as well as for the generous hospitality they enjoyed during their stay. in Benin.

Done at Cotonou, 08 January 2016

For the WAEMU Conference of Heads of State and Government

The President-in-Office,

H.E.M. Alassane OUATTARA