ECOWAS

ECOWAS, the Economic Community of West African States, is a regional political and economic union formed to promote integration and development in West Africa. It was established by the Lagos Treaty of 1975 and today comprises 15 member states: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo. The federation aims to create a large common market and to coordinate policies in areas such as trade, industry, infrastructure, and security.

The core objectives of ECOWAS include the gradual liberalization of regional trade, the free movement of persons, residents, and establishment, the creation of a customs union with a common external tariff, and the harmonization of economic and sectoral policies. Over the years, ECOWAS has developed various instruments to support integration, including trade liberalization schemes, a regional electricity project, and transport and transit arrangements to improve cross-border commerce. The region has also established institutions to govern and oversee integration, such as the ECOWAS Commission, the Authority of Heads of State and Government, the ECOWAS Parliament, the ECOWAS Court of Justice, and the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID).

Key initiatives associated with ECOWAS include the West African Power Pool to interconnect electricity grids, efforts to improve regional transit and trade facilitation, and programs aimed at macroeconomic stability and development funding. While progress toward deeper monetary and political integration has been uneven, ECOWAS remains a central framework for regional cooperation in West Africa. Challenges include political instability in some member states, governance issues, and uneven economic development, but the bloc continues to pursue mechanisms for economic diversification and regional resilience.