The ECOWAS Parliament has endorsed sanctions for member states that violate regional trade protocols, a move aimed at strengthening compliance and boosting intra-regional commerce. Analysts say stricter enforcement could unlock greater opportunities for MSMEs, reduce poverty and unemployment, and improve economic stability across West Africa.

The Parliament of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has thrown its weight behind the imposition of sanctions on member states that fail to comply with regional trade protocols, saying stronger enforcement is critical to achieving economic integration and unlocking the full potential of the sub-region.

The position was echoed by lawmakers at the sidelines of the ongoing delocalised meeting of the ECOWAS Parliament’s Joint Committee on Industry and Private Sector, Macroeconomic Policy and Economic Research, Administration, Finance and Budget, and Public Accounts in Cotonou, Republic of Benin.

The development follows a recommendation by Dr. Tony Luka Elumelu of the ECOWAS Business Council Secretariat, who had earlier urged the regional bloc to introduce sanctions for countries that undermine agreements designed to facilitate the free movement of goods, services and people across West Africa.

Speaking with journalists on Tuesday, Nigerian lawmaker, Hon. Bashiru Dawodu, said ECOWAS member states must move beyond rhetoric and begin implementing protocols that promote regional trade and economic cooperation.

According to him, the region’s estimated population of more than 400 million represents a vast economic market whose full potential remains untapped because member states continue to operate in isolation.

“I buy into this idea because we are about 400 million people in West Africa generating billions of dollars, but our challenge is that we are not integrated. We are all operating in silos,” Dawodu said.

“We already have the laws, but sometimes people need to be compelled to do the right thing. If countries know there are consequences for failing to comply, they will perform better.”

He argued that the effective implementation of ECOWAS protocols on the free movement of people, goods and services remains indispensable to improving intra-African trade and accelerating economic growth across the region.

Dawodu also stressed the need to integrate micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) into the formal economy, noting that a significant proportion of businesses in West Africa continue to operate outside formal regulatory and financial systems.

He said bringing these enterprises into regional value chains would improve their access to financing, expand cross-border trade and strengthen the region’s economic competitiveness.

“It is extremely important to integrate small and medium-sized businesses into the value chain. In ECOWAS countries, about 90 per cent of our people operate in the informal sector. Many traders are not captured within the formal economy, making it difficult for them to access financing and other opportunities,” he said.

“The essence of this meeting is to strengthen regional integration, facilitate trade in goods and services, improve infrastructure and create better financing opportunities for small businesses.”

Also speaking, Liberian lawmaker Hon. Taa Wongbe urged ECOWAS institutions and member state governments to move beyond policy declarations and enforce existing regional agreements.

He lamented that despite decades of regional integration efforts, traders and travellers continue to face numerous roadblocks, border delays and administrative bottlenecks that increase the cost of doing business across West Africa.

Drawing from personal experience, Wongbe recalled travelling across several West African countries as a child and said many of the same barriers still exist today.

“Unfortunately, after all these years, we are still experiencing the same challenges. Our mothers and traders continue to spend days and sometimes weeks moving goods across borders. These delays make goods and services more expensive across our countries,” he said.

The Liberian legislator proposed the establishment of a parliamentary fact-finding committee to undertake on-the-spot assessments of border operations across the region.

According to him, firsthand experience of the challenges confronting traders would strengthen the Parliament’s advocacy and place greater pressure on member state governments to dismantle unnecessary trade barriers.

“I have consistently pushed for a committee that will travel across our borders and experience exactly what our people go through. Once we see these challenges ourselves, we will be in a stronger position to push our governments to remove the roadblocks hindering regional trade,” Wongbe added.

The deliberations come as ECOWAS intensifies efforts to deepen regional integration through the implementation of the ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme (ETLS) and other protocols aimed at promoting the free movement of people, goods and services.

Observers say the success of those initiatives will depend largely on the willingness of member states to fully implement agreed policies and remove longstanding administrative and logistical barriers that continue to hinder cross-border commerce.

With lawmakers and the ECOWAS Commission now aligned on the need for stricter enforcement measures, attention is expected to shift to the Authority of Heads of State and Government, which will ultimately determine whether sanctions become part of the bloc’s strategy for improving compliance with regional trade obligations.

Analysts believe stronger implementation of ECOWAS trade protocols could significantly boost intra-regional commerce, strengthen MSMEs, reduce poverty and unemployment, and enhance economic stability across West Africa.