Building A Monetary Union in Africa

IMF Blog, March 4, 2015

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Building A Monetary Union in Africa

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Bibliographic details

• Authors: the IMF, find out how Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi stand to benefit from the creation of the East African Community.
• Published: March 4, 2015

Overview

• Publication date: March 4, 2015
• Theme: Monetary unions; focus on the East African Community and the prospect of a common currency for East Africa.
• Medium: Podcast produced by the IMF.

Participating countries and objectives

• Countries discussed: Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi.
• Objectives highlighted:
  • Creation of a common currency.
  • Increased trade and investment among member countries.

Observed benefits from regional integration

• Trade facilitation: "It took more than three weeks to move goods from Kenya or Tanzania to Uganda; now it takes four to six days,” said the IMF's Oral Williams, one of the editors of a recent book on the East African Community.
• Increased trade and investment are cited as benefits of integration.

Risks and questions raised

• The podcast raises the question: Will a union also expose them to more risk?
• Listeners are invited to consider potential trade-offs between the benefits of a monetary union and possible increased exposure to economic risks.

Access and format

• Format: Audio podcast.
• Embedded media referenced from SoundCloud.

Source: Building A Monetary Union in Africa, March 4, 2015

References

• podcast
• recent book