By Jane Salihu
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament on Monday opened its First Extraordinary Session and Parliamentary Seminar for 2026 in Abuja with a renewed commitment to deepen regional integration and expand intra-community trade through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
Speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament, Hadja Mémounatou IBRAHIMA, said the session marked the beginning of the Parliament’s legislative year and called on lawmakers to deliver concrete results that respond to the aspirations of over 400 million citizens across the sub-region.
She expressed gratitude to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Federal Government of Nigeria, and the Nigerian people for hosting the regional legislature, describing Abuja as the symbolic and operational home of the ECOWAS Parliament.
Mrs. IBRAHIMA described the seminar theme—“Deepening Regional Integration through the AfCFTA: Opportunities and Challenges for Expanding Intra-Community Trade”—as central to West Africa’s economic transformation, stressing that the AfCFTA must serve as a catalyst for structural change and industrial development.
She highlighted the region’s strengths, including macroeconomic harmonisation, the Common External Tariff, and innovative systems such as the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System and the ECOWAS Brown Card, but lamented that intra-regional trade remains below 10 percent and that most countries still export raw materials with limited local value addition.
The Parliament Speaker urged lawmakers to harmonise legal frameworks, dismantle non-tariff barriers, and ensure that integration policies are inclusive, particularly for women, youth, and small and medium-scale enterprises.
She also outlined the Parliament’s strategic priorities for 2026, including consolidating democracy, strengthening peace and security cooperation, and advancing women’s leadership in governance and decision-making.
In a goodwill message delivered on behalf of the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, the First Deputy Speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament and Deputy Senate President of the Nigerian National Assembly, Senator Barau Jibrin, emphasised that deeper integration is critical for West Africa to compete in an increasingly competitive global economy.
Senator Barau warned that fragmentation and isolation could marginalise the region, urging member states to unite economically and politically to secure markets, defend democracy, and safeguard prosperity.
He described the AfCFTA as a historic restoration of Africa’s traditional interconnected trade systems, noting that pre-colonial West Africa thrived through commerce and cooperation across borders.
The Deputy Senate President called for practical implementation of AfCFTA commitments, including harmonised standards, efficient ports, transparent customs systems, and digital trade infrastructure to reduce costs and empower entrepreneurs.
He further stressed that insecurity and political instability remain major obstacles to integration, noting that economic cooperation and political stability are mutually reinforcing pillars that must be strengthened simultaneously.
Both speakers underscored the region’s youthful population as a major asset, urging member states to leverage AfCFTA to promote digital commerce, agro-processing, creative industries, and renewable energy partnerships to create sustainable jobs.
The opening ceremony also marked the commencement of deliberations on the ECOWAS Parliament’s 2026 Annual Work Plan, with participants expressing optimism that the session would accelerate regional integration and position West Africa as a competitive and resilient economic bloc.