Arguably, the fear of a very public downgrade of a sovereign credit rating is a much more powerful incentive for sound macroeconomic policy than the fear of an IMF program going off-tack, as the latter is subject to at least some degree of negotiation between the authorities and the IMF, with both sides anxious to avoid this outcome if possible.
Fellow Governors, Central Banks are also expected to support the development and integration of the financial system as well as the implementation of other priority areas of the EAMU Protocol including the attainment of Macroeconomic Convergence (by 2021), Harmonization of Monetary and Exchange rate Operations (by 2022) and Introduction of the Single Currency (by 2024).