Franc zone growth falls below the sub-Saharan average.

Evidence

From this point of view, the performance of the countries of the franc zone since their independence, or, depending on the case, since their entry into the franc zone, is very disappointing. When a country registers an average annual growth of 1 per cent of its real GDP per capita, it means that the latter doubles every 70 years. However, over the 1960–2016 period, the major economies of the zone – the Ivory Coast (0.45 per cent), Cameroon (0.8 per cent) and Senegal (0.02 per cent) – did even worse. Only five of the 15 African countries of the zone achieved a growth rate of over 1 per cent: Mali (2 per cent between 1984 and 2016), Burkina Faso (1.84 per cent) and three oil-exporting countries, Equatorial Guinea (10.3 per cent between 1985 and 2016), Gabon (1.41 per cent) and Congo (1.21 per cent). — Fanny Pigeaud_ Ndongo Samba Sylla, Africa’s Last Colonial Currency, 281 (#expands, via linked claim)

It should be noted that the rate of access to banking services – that is, the percentage of citizens over 15 who have a bank account – in the franc zone is among the lowest in the world, less than 10 per cent on average, compared to 24 per cent average in sub-Saharan Africa in 2011. — Fanny Pigeaud_ Ndongo Samba Sylla, Africa’s Last Colonial Currency, 310 (#qualifies, via linked claim)

IMF data seems to suggest that a fixed exchange rate is not necessarily a good option for African countries: since 2000, sub-Saharan African countries operating in a fixed exchange rate regime have experienced an economic growth 1 to 2 percentage points lower than countries with a flexible exchange rate. This gap is due in particular to the ‘weaker growth among the CFA France zone countries’, states the IMF. — Fanny Pigeaud_ Ndongo Samba Sylla, Africa’s Last Colonial Currency, 296 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Franc zone growth is uneven and often strongly negative; Bank account access in the franc zone is below the sub-Saharan average. — Fanny Pigeaud_ Ndongo Samba Sylla, Africa’s Last Colonial Currency, 310; Franc zone economies have stagnated since independence, with most growing under 1 percent yearly — Fanny Pigeaud_ Ndongo Samba Sylla, Africa’s Last Colonial Currency, 281 (+4 more)

Related

• Franc zone economies have stagnated since independence, with most growing under 1 percent yearly (similarity 0.90)
• Franc zone growth is uneven and often strongly negative (similarity 0.90)
• Bank account access in the franc zone is below the sub-Saharan average. (similarity 0.89)
• Recent franc zone growth only recovers past peaks, not net progress (similarity 0.86)
• Franc zone growth mostly reflects multinational activity, not local productive capacity (similarity 0.83)
• Fixed exchange rate countries in sub-Saharan Africa grow 1-2 points slower (similarity 0.83)
• The CFA system only works while franc-zone economies stay small (similarity 0.82)
• Four structural handicaps explain the franc zone’s poor socioeconomic performance (similarity 0.81)
• Reformers demand flexible exchange rates and growth-oriented central bank policy (similarity 0.79)
• ECOWAS convergence criteria are unrealistic for volatile African economies (similarity 0.79)
• African franc-zone reserves effectively grant France subsidized loans below market rates. (similarity 0.78)

Broader Connections

• Franc zone economies have stagnated since independence, with most growing under 1 percent yearly #expands (0.60) — Fanny Pigeaud_ Ndongo Samba Sylla, Africa’s Last Colonial Currency, 281
• Bank account access in the franc zone is below the sub-Saharan average. #qualifies (0.55) — Fanny Pigeaud_ Ndongo Samba Sylla, Africa’s Last Colonial Currency, 310
• Fixed exchange rate countries in sub-Saharan Africa grow 1-2 points slower #corroborates (0.55) — Fanny Pigeaud_ Ndongo Samba Sylla, Africa’s Last Colonial Currency, 296
• Franc zone growth mostly reflects multinational activity, not local productive capacity #complicates (0.50) — Fanny Pigeaud_ Ndongo Samba Sylla, Africa’s Last Colonial Currency, 315
• Recent franc zone growth only recovers past peaks, not net progress #complicates (0.50) — Fanny Pigeaud_ Ndongo Samba Sylla, Africa’s Last Colonial Currency, 282
• Four structural handicaps explain the franc zone’s poor socioeconomic performance #expands (0.50) — Fanny Pigeaud_ Ndongo Samba Sylla, Africa’s Last Colonial Currency, 293