Course summary: Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS CEDEAO) is a regional
African trade bloc founded in 1975
The members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)
are : Benin,
Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Ivory Coast (Côte d'Ivoire), Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau,
Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo.
The mission of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is to promote
economic integration in industry,
international transport, telecommunications, energy, agriculture,
natural resources,
International trade, monetary
and financial, social and
cultural themes.
- The Economic Community of West African States member
economies occupy a surface area of 1.5 million Km² (17% of the total surface of Africa).
- The ECOWAS countries
with the biggest land mass are Niger (25%) and Mali
(24); the nation smallest is Cabo Verde.
- Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is the most populous regional
economic community in Africa.
The population of West Africa is 262 million people.
Nigeria
is the most populous nation
in the regions (52 % of the ECOWAS total
population), followed by Ghana (23 million). Cabo Verde has smallest population
(0.2%)
In the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) exist another economic sub
bloc: the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA)
formed by
Benin, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal
and Togo. UEMOA is a monetary and
customs union with a common currency, the CFA franc.
The 7 remaining countries in Economic Community Of West African States (ECOWAS)
have each their own national currencies.
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is working to resolve a possible conflict with
other existing customs union in West Africa region: the
West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) - by adopting that Union's tariff bands.
Example of the course Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS):
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission and the ECOWAS Bank for
Investment and Development are its 2 main institutions intended to implement
policies and carry out development projects.
The institutions of the Economic Community Of West African States (ECOWAS)
are as follows:
- The Commission
- The community Parliament
- The community Court OF Justice
- ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID)
The West African Monetary Agency (WAMA) is an autonomous
specialized agency of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
The West African Monetary Institute (WAMI) established under
the Agreement of the West African Monetary Zone should perform its functions and
carry out its activities in agreement with the WAMZ treaty.
