West African Bankers' Association of each participating countries financed the association. The WABA serves as an intermediary between banks and the sub-regional committee of the central banks. The association is located in Freetown, Sierra Leone. West African Bankers' Association The West African Bankers' Association (WABA; ) is a professional association of banking and financial services and institutions in West Africa. It has its headquarters and offices in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo. The WABA was created in August 10, 1981 with the main purpose of supporting and developing the
Benin has had a tumultuous history since then, with many different democratic governments, military coups, and military governments. A Marxist–Leninist state called the People's Republic of Benin existed between 1975 and 1990. In 1991, it was replaced by the current multi-party Republic of Benin. During the colonial period and at independence, the country was known as Dahomey. On 30 November 1975, it was renamed to Benin, after the body of water on which the country lies—the Bight of Benin. This had been named by Europeans after the Benin Empire in present-day Nigeria. The country of Benin has no connection to Benin