The CFA franc was created in 1945, not by Africans, but by France, for France. When independence came in the 1960s, 14 countries kept the currency. What most people do not know is what came with it.
For decades, every country using the CFA franc was required to deposit 50% of its foreign exchange reserves into an account held at the French Treasury in Paris. Not invested on behalf of Africa. Held in Paris. France then earned interest on those reserves.
The notes were printed in France. The exchange rate was set by France. French representatives sat inside the central banks governing the currency.
In 2019, after years of protests led by Pan-African movements, France agreed to end the deposit requirement for West Africa. The currency is still pegged to the euro. It is still called the CFA franc. Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger are now debating leaving the zone entirely.
The deposit obligation critics called a humiliating attachment to France lasted over 60 years.  That is not history. That is recent memory.
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