West Africa’s aspiration for seamless regional trade has long been anchored on the promise of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). Yet this promise continues to be undermined by persistent non-tariff barriers that frustrate the movement of goods, inflate business costs, and weaken economic integration.
The recent SPS/TBT forum held in Accra by ECOWAS in partnership with TradeMark Africa (TMA) highlighted these challenges and signaled a renewed push to confront them. What remains essential is firm political will, coordinated action, and a commitment to implementation.
The Abidjan–Lagos Corridor, often described as the region’s most economically vibrant trade route, continues to operate far below its potential. Traders, especially those transporting food and agricultural produce, encounter duplicated inspections, inconsistent standards, and unpredictable border procedures. The result is that moving goods from one West African country to another can sometimes be more cumbersome than exporting outside the continent.
At the heart of the problem is the lack of harmonized standards and mutual recognition systems. As Anthe Vrijlandt, Director of Strategy and Partnerships at TradeMark Africa, observed, a simple journey across borders can turn nightmarish when perishable goods such as bananas are held for weeks due to unclear or conflicting checks. These bottlenecks lead to heavy losses for traders and discourage investment in agribusiness.
Ghana’s food surplus illustrates the potential of regional trade when agricultural productivity meets demand. However, without a predictable and efficient trade environment, farmers and agribusinesses cannot reap the benefits of wider markets. The forum’s focus on standardization, trust, and mutual recognition of laboratory results is therefore not just technical — it is an economic imperative. Accepting accredited national laboratory results across borders or harmonizing standards so that products tested in one country are accepted in all can significantly reduce costs and turnaround times for traders.
ECOWAS must take cues from East Africa, where collaborative frameworks have successfully reduced duplication of inspections and fostered smoother trade flows. As Midaye Koissi, Principal Programme Officer for Quality Standards at ECOWAS, emphasized, quality tests conducted in one country should not be repeated in another. Continuing such practices burdens the private sector and undermines competitiveness.
Achieving reform requires more than technical committees and well-crafted documents. The private sector, as stressed by Anthony Morrison, CEO of the Chamber of Agribusiness, is central to the success of trade liberalization. Businesses must meet established standards, comply with rules of origin under AfCFTA and the ECOWAS Trade Liberalization Scheme (ETLS), and improve product quality. Equally, governments must ensure compliance results in tangible benefits — smoother passage at borders, reduced delays, and predictable procedures.
The time for lofty discussions is over. West Africa’s economic future depends on bold and practical steps to remove the cumbersome barriers that have stifled intra-regional trade for decades. ECOWAS and its partners must deliver not only strategies but measurable progress. Only then can the region unlock its full trade potential and move closer to a truly integrated West Africa.
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The post Breaking the Barriers: ECOWAS Must Act Now to Unlock West Africa’s Trade Potential appeared first on Ghanaian Times.
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