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“ECOWAS must walk the talk” – Ambassador Mohammed Lawan Gana calls for action at Policy Series Launch

by Abigail Teye0
GIZ/ECOWAS Commission/Mohammed Lawan Gana
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The Resident Representative of ECOWAS in Ghana, Ambassador Mohammed Lawan Gana, has issued a strong call for renewed political commitment and practical implementation of ECOWAS protocols, warning that the regional bloc risks stagnation without urgent reforms.
Speaking on behalf of the President of the ECOWAS Commission, His Excellency Dr. Omar Alieu Touray, Gana delivered the opening remarks at the launch of the ECOWAS Policy Analysis Series held in Accra on 11th July, 2025.
The event, organised in collaboration with German Development Cooperation (GIZ), the Africa Policy Research Institute (APRI), and the Legon Centre for International Affairs and Diplomacy (LECIAD), also forms part of activities marking ECOWAS’s 50th anniversary.
“Free movement at the moment exists only on paper,” Gana stated, urging ECOWAS to establish a stronger presence at land and sea borders to enforce compliance with its own protocols.
Despite milestone achievements since its founding in 1975—including the ECOWAS Trade Liberalization Scheme and the Free Movement Protocol—Gana said the bloc faces serious setbacks in implementation. Infrastructure gaps, political instability, and inconsistent enforcement among member states were cited as major obstacles to deeper integration.

Anniversary reflections, real-world challenges

Gana recalled the symbolic re-enactment of the ECOWAS Treaty of Lagos signing on 28 May 2025, which brought together former and current West African leaders in a pledge to uphold the community’s founding aspirations. But he warned that without a coordinated and strategic response to real-world issues, “such laudable efforts risk becoming exercises in creativity.”
He outlined pressing regional concerns including:
•Weak enforcement of regional protocols
•Underdeveloped infrastructure in landlocked areas
•Terrorism and political instability in the Sahel
•Youth unemployment and climate vulnerability
•Abuse of ECOWAS visa waivers and corruption at border posts
•Overdependence on raw commodity exports with little value addition

A shifting geopolitical terrain

Gana also sounded the alarm over West Africa’s increasingly contested geopolitical space, noting the growing influence of actors like Russia, China, Turkey, and the Gulf States, which is challenging traditional partnerships and turning the region into what he described as a “theatre for proxy struggles.”
“We live in a rapidly changing global context. Our region must not become the battleground for external interests,” he added.

A people-centred agenda

Gana called for renewed focus on ECOWAS Vision 2050, which aims to shift the bloc from an “ECOWAS of States” to an “ECOWAS of the People.” This includes empowering youth and civil society, investing in green jobs and renewable energy, and promoting regional value chains in agriculture, textiles, and ICT.
He also highlighted recent progress in infrastructure, including Phase 1 of the Dakar–Bamako railway, the Dakar–Abidjan multimodal corridor, and the nearly completed Lagos–Abidjan highway feasibility study.
“ECOWAS is at a crossroads,” Gana concluded. “To remain relevant, we must recommit ourselves not just to the ideals but to the implementation of policies that make a tangible difference in the lives of our citizens.”
The launch event marked the unveiling of 14 empirical policy papers, collectively known as the ECOWAS Policy Analysis Series, commissioned by the ECOWAS Commission with financial and technical support from GIZ and Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), with co-financing from the European Union.
Report by Sandra Akimi for Asaase News in Greater Accra

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