The ECOWAS Parliament has backed proposals to impose sanctions on member states that fail to implement regional trade protocols designed to boost free movement and support small businesses.
The parliamentary endorsement follows recommendations made by the ECOWAS Business Council Secretariat during a joint committee meeting in Cotonou, Republic of Benin.
Speaking on the sidelines of the meeting on Tuesday, Nigerian lawmaker Bashiru Dawodu argued that member states could no longer operate in isolation.
“We are about 400 million people in West Africa generating billions of dollars, but our challenge is that we are not integrated,” Dawodu said. “If the countries know that they face sanctions, I think they would do better.”
Bringing small businesses into the formal economy
Dawodu emphasized that integrating Micro, Small, and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) into regional value chains is crucial, noting that roughly 90 per cent of traders in the sub-region currently operate within the informal sector.
He stressed that formalization would improve access to financing, strengthen infrastructure, and expand cross-border trade across West Africa.
Calls for direct parliamentary action on border barriers
Highlighting persistent travel and logistics delays, Liberian lawmaker Taa Wongbe recounted personal experiences of border bottlenecks that continue to inflate the cost of goods and services.
Wongbe urged the regional parliament to establish a dedicated oversight committee to inspect border crossings directly and experience the delays faced by citizens firsthand.
“When we experience it, then we can go and pressure our governments to remove some of those roadblocks,” Wongbe said, calling for stronger political commitment to achieve true regional integration.
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