CBN Governor, Emefiele, Emerges President Of Association Of African Central Banks

The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin I. Emefiele, has been elected as President of the Association of African Central Banks (AACB) for the 2016- 2017 period.
Emefiele was elected at the end of the 39th Ordinary meeting of the Assembly of Governors of the Association of African Central Banks (AACB) in Abuja, the Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory. The meeting was declared open by President Muhammadu Buhari.
Emefiele as President, now heads the Bureau of the AACB that is made up of the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Governor of the Central Bank of Ghana as Chairman of the West African Sub-region; Governor of the Central Bank of Mauritania as Chairman of the North African Sub-region; Governor of the Bank of Central African States as Chairman of the Central African Sub-region; Governor of the Banque de la République du Burundi as Chairman of the East African Sub-region and Governor of the Central Bank of the Kingdom of Swaziland as Chairman of the Southern African Sub-region;
It also includes nomination for Vice President of the AACB that should come from the Southern African Sub-region.
The Deputy Governor of the Banque Centrale de la République de Guinée, Mr Nianga Komata Goumou, on behalf of all the Governors and delegates, expressed gratitude to President Buhari, the Government and people of Nigeria, for the warm welcome and hospitality shown, as well as the excellent measures taken to ensure the success of the meetings.
In a communique issued at the end of the meeting, the Association of African Central Banks feared that the unwinding of unconventional monetary policy measures, adopted during the financial crisis by the US Federal Reserve and central banks of developed countries, could have a negative impact on African countries due to the interconnectedness of economies.
“In this context, African countries face challenges, especially the depreciation of the exchange rate and the decline in capital flows which could result from an exit from unconventional monetary policies in the developed countries.
“On the other hand, the unwinding of unconventional monetary policy could be an opportunity for African countries to develop appropriate measures to strengthen their resilience in the face of exogenous shocks.
“In this regard, the Assembly of Governors stressed that it is necessary for African countries to diversify their economies and improve exports, while limiting imports. It was also emphasised the urgent need for coordination between monetary and fiscal policy.
“The Assembly of Governors chose the following theme for the year 2017 Symposium: “Prospects for monetary integration in Africa: Lessons learned from the experience of monetary and financial integration of Europe”
“The Assembly of Governors of the AACB, otherwise, particularly examined the state of implementation of the African Monetary Cooperation Programme (AMCP). The Governors pointed out the inability of African states to sustainably meet some of the criteria for macroeconomic convergence because of the negative impact of the international environment including the fall in prices of raw materials and commodities. “They called on countries to strengthen efforts at implementing structural reforms, in order to diversify their economies, improve the business environment and promote intra-regional trade, in order to strengthen their resilience in the face of external shocks.
“The Governors also reviewed the implementation of the work programme of the Community of African Banking Supervisors (CABS). This program has helped to set up an intranet platform to facilitate exchange of information between banking supervisors across Africa. To support the actions of the CABS, a project for collecting information on the activities of cross-border banks will be implemented in the coming months. It will allow for the identification of risks associated with these activities.” [myad]