An article used as a means of exchange in the early days of trade in West Africa was

An article used as a means of exchange in the early days of trade in West Africa was the cowrie. A cowrie is a small, shiny, freshwater snail shell that was widely used as a form of currency in many parts of Africa, Asia, and the Pacific. It was especially popular in West Africa, where it was used for trade and as a means of exchange for goods and services. The cowrie was valued for its rarity and beauty, as well as for its durability, making it an ideal form of currency for long-distance trade. The other options - cedis, dalasi, and naira - are all the names of modern-day currencies used in West Africa, but they were not used as a means of exchange in the early days of trade in the region.