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Written by Bate Felix
DAKAR (Reuters) – Senegal’s ruling coalition’s presidential candidate, former Prime Minister Amadou Bah, said on Friday that the opposition’s proposal to introduce its own currency could discourage investors and warned the country would I warned him that there was no room for it.
“The current heightened debate over currencies is causing anxiety among investors. Tomorrow, investors will wait and see before investing,” Ba told reporters in Dakar. told. “Our economic and social circumstances cannot create this kind of uncertainty.”
Ba, 62, is running against 18 other candidates in Sunday’s Senegalese presidential election. Although no front-runner has emerged, the opposition party is showing strong momentum with the support of Basilou Diomai Faye, 43, a former national tax inspector.
Fay has the backing of opposition leader Ousmane Sonko and on Friday received the support of Senegal’s former president. abdoulaye wade and his Democratic Party of Senegal.
Fay said he would first explore financial reforms within the eight-nation West African Monetary Union, which uses the CFA franc. If that fails, he will push for a national currency.
Ba said he would rather seek a monetary union for the 15-nation West African regional bloc. “Our currency is convertible and stable, and inflation is moderate compared to countries with their own currencies,” he said.
In response to former Wade’s support for Fay, Ba said he would continue to reach out to supporters of the Senegalese Democratic Party.
Fay’s campaign has garnered widespread support from Senegal’s disaffected youth, who face high unemployment rates in a country where the median age is 19.
Ba said if elected, he would reform the fishing industry and help small-scale fishermen improve their incomes. The sector is the country’s third-largest employer, but Ba is in crisis, he said.
Many Senegalese fishermen embarked on dangerous voyages across the Atlantic Ocean in search of a better life in Europe.
(Reporting by Bate Felix; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
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