West Africa’s economic prospects at pivotal moment as regional integration faces major challenge

On 29 January 2024, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger notified the Commission of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) of their intention to withdraw from ECOWAS. Established in 1975 to promote economic integration, ECOWAS has been instrumental in developing institutional mechanisms for regional cooperation.

While these countries’ reasons for their withdrawal from the regional organization have been widely reported, doing so implies the loss of economic linkages with other ECOWAS countries under the current institutional arrangements under a series of treaties and agreements. Currently, the ECOWAS Protocol on Free Movement assures free movement of ECOWAS residents and businesses within the region with ECOWAS common passports.

The ECOWAS Trade Liberalization Scheme allows for duty-free access of unprocessed goods, traditional handicrafts, and industrial products of ECOWAS origins to other ECOWAS countries. A withdrawal may also result in losing access to large-scale regional infrastructure projects such as the ECOWAS Regional Electricity Market. Regional integration in West Africa is a crucial economic strategy to enhance resilience, promote sustainable development, and mitigate the adverse effects of global economic volatility.

The potential benefits of such integration are immense, particularly for the region’s least developed countries, including Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger. West African countries are already facing a challenging economic situation, a deteriorating security situation in the Sahel, and frequent extreme weather events. From 2016 to 2023, the region’s GDP per capita stagnated and is projected to grow at 1.3 per cent in 2024 – which is insufficient to reduce poverty given high population growth. As West Africa navigates the current turmoil, the role of regional and international partners, including the wider international community, becomes increasingly significant.

Learn more in the March Monthly Briefing of the World Economic Situation and Prospects available on 1 March 2024.

Photo Credit: UN Photo/Marco Dormino