In 1989, BCEAO Governor Alassane Ouattara promoted the creation of a single banking supervisory authority for the entire West African Monetary Union, in a context of banking sector fragility in West Africa and widespread supervisory failure by the then-existing national banking commissions of the individual UMOA member states.[1]
The Banking Commission was established by an international convention signed by the participating governments in Ouagadougou on 24 April 1990, complemented by a bilateral agreement between the BCEAO and Ivory Coast on 16 October 1990 to establish the Commission in Abidjan with appropriate privileges and immunities.[1] The area remains far from a full banking union, however, since the financial burden of bank crisis management and resolution has remained at the national level.[2] The Banking Commission's scope of authority, moreover, only covers the larger and/or cross-border banks, whether smaller local banks remain supervised by national authorities.[citation needed]
The governor of the BCEAO acts as chairman (French: Président) of the CB-UMOA, whose operations are led by a secretary-general (French: Secrétaire général) based in Abidjan.[1]
Leadership
The following individuals have held the position of Secretary-General of the CB-UMOA since its establishment:[1]
Djibril Sakho, October 1990 - October 1993
Marcel Kodjo, October 1993 - September 1998
Emmanuel Nana, September 1998 - February 2003
Mamadou Diop, February 2003 - January 2007
Eric Ekue, January 2007 - January 2009
Charles Luanga Ki-Zerbo, January 2009 - January 2012
