The West African CFA franc (symbol: CFA, ISO 4217 code: XOF) is the currency used by eight independent states in West Africa which make up the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA; Union Économique et Monétaire Ouest Africaine): Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo. These eight countries had a combined population of 105.7 million people in 2014, and a combined GDP of US$128.6 billion (as of 2018).
The acronym CFA stands for Communauté Financière Africaine (“African Financial Community”). The currency is issued by the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO; Banque Centrale des États de l’Afrique de l’Ouest), located in Dakar, Senegal, for the members of the UEMOA. The franc is nominally subdivided into 100 centimes but no centime denominations have been issued. The production of CFA franc notes and coins, and those of some 20 countries, has been carried out at Chamalières by the Bank of France since its creation in 1945.
The Central African CFA franc is of equal value to the West African CFA franc, and is in circulation in several central African states. They are both commonly referred to as the CFA franc.
In December 2019 it was announced that the West African CFA franc would be reformed, which will include renaming it the eco and reducing France’s role in the currency. The broader Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), of which the members of UEMOA are also members, plans to introduce its own common currency for its member states by 2027, which they have also formally adopted the name of eco for.
XOF Banknotes
In 2004, a new series of notes was introduced in denominations of 1,000, 2,000, 5,000 and 10,000 francs, with the 500-franc note having been replaced by a coin the year before. The newer notes contain updated security features and are more modern in design. The change was welcomed because of a perception that the old notes were dirty and disease-ridden. The colour of the 5,000-franc note was changed from blue to green. On November 30, 2012, the Banque Centrale des États de l’Afrique de l’Ouest (Central Bank of the West African States) issued a 500-franc banknote.