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09/14/2004:

"West Africa braces for currency changeover"

DAKAR : The west African central bank will Wednesday embark on a controversial and complicated campaign in eight mostly rural countries to replace old CFA franc banknotes, in a bid to halt the counterfeiting of the bills that make up half the money in circulation.

Come December 31, bills of all denominations from the 1992 series will no longer be considered legal tender in Senegal, Mali, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Niger, Togo, Benin and Guinea Bissau, said a senior official of the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO), Amadou Bachir.

Citizens will be able to exchange their worn currency for new bills, free of charge, at central bank locations around the region, post offices and treasury posts that will be mounted expressly for the campaign.

Full Article : channelnewsasia.com