The eight-nation West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA), that houses some 80 million people, is set to record a feeble growth rate of 4 percent this year, head of the region's central bank said on Tuesday.
"2007 could also be marked by a relatively feeble growth of four percent," acting governor of Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO), Damo Justin Barro said. The growth rate last year was also low — mere 3.2 percent.
Barro ascribed the dim growth rate to falling agricultural revenues, especially for cotton, which is a major cash crop in the region. Rise in petroleum imports and a lingering political crisis are other governing factors. However, the bank chief said inflation across the region had been contained at an average of 2.3 percent last year against 4.3 percent in 2005.
UEMOA is a customs and monetary union between some of the members of the larger Economic Community of West African States. It comprises Benin, Burkina Faso, Guinea Bissau, Ivory Coast, Mali, Niger, Togo and Senegal.
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