History Of West Africa
Before the creation of ECOWAS, the collective territory known as West Africa, was made up of an aggregation of states that had emerged from different colonial experiences and administrations which largely defined the boundaries of the 15 states domiciled in the area.
Even though Member States of the community now make use of three official languages (English, French and Portuguese), there are well over a thousand existing local languages including cross-border native tongues such as Ewe, Fulfulde, Hausa, Mandingo, Wolof, Yoruba, Ga, etc. that constitute its over 300 million people tucked in a vast land of about 5.1 million square kilometres.
Prior to colonialism, the area played host to many proud empires and kingdoms that spanned centuries, some of which included Ghana, Mali Songhai, Wolof, Oyo, Benin and Kanem Bornu.
The region’s cultural, linguistic and ecological diversity presents both opportunities and challenges for the integration process. The longing to combine forces politically and economically has always been recognised as a step forward in the desire to engender co-prosperity in the area.
In this regard, the first effort at integration dates back to 1945 with the creation of CFA franc that brought the francophone countries of the region into a single currency union. Then in 1964, Liberian president William Tubman proposed an economic union for West Africa leading to an agreement which was signed in 1965 by the four states of Cote d’Ivore, Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
However, it was not until 1972 that a proposal for a union of West African States emerged. That year, the Nigerian head of state Gen Yakubu Gowon and his Togolese counterpart Gnassingbe Eyadema toured the region in support of the integration Idea. Thanks to the drafts that emanated from their efforts. These formed the basis for the emergence of the treaty of Lagos in 1975 which birthed ECOWAS. The treaty of Lagos was originally touted as an economic initiative, but emerging political events led to its revision and there with the expansion of scope and powers in 1993.
ECOWAS is meant to foster interstate economic and political cooperation. History is on its side in this regard. Dating back to pre-colonial times, West Africans have been among the world’s most mobile populations although much of the migration had been intra-regional. About 7.5 million West African migrants (3 percent of the regional population) are living in ECOWAS countries other than their own. The 1.2 million other migrants are dispersed mainly in North America and Europe. Estimated at about 149 million in 2013, women constitute over 50 percent of the region’s population. The cross-border migration of women as traders and business persons places them as potential champions for promoting integration. This reality needs to be fully exploited.
The diverse socio-cultural dimension of development should be a necessary building block for establishing peace and security in the region. Drawing strength from its past, leaders of the community have been making sacrifices to keep the shape of the political structure of the region. In 1976, Cape Verde, one of the two Lusophone countries in the region joined ECOWAS, and in December 2000, Mauritania withdrew its membership.
At all times, ECOWAS chief executive officers presiding initially as Executive Secretaries and now as Presidents, defer to the supreme organ of the community-the Authority of the Heads of State of Government for guidance. This body is usually headed by a Chairman. According to Economic Community Of West African States ECOWAS.
The 15 members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) are Benin, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Cote d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo.
Below are West African Countries by capital, official language, land area, and currency .
1. Republic of Chad
Capital: N’Djamena
Official language: French and Arabic
Area: 1,284,000 square kilometers
Currency: Central African CFA franc
2. Republic of the Niger
Capital: Niamey
Official language: French
Area: 1,267,000 square kilometers
Currency: West African CFA franc
3. Republic of Mali
Capital: Bamako
Official language: French
Area: 1,240,192 square kilometers
Currency: West African CFA franc
4. Islamic Republic of Mauritania
Capital: Nouakchott
Official language: Arabic
Area: 1,030,000 square kilometers
Currency: Ouguiya
5. Federal Republic of Nigeria
Capital: Abuja
Official language: English
Area: 923,768 square kilometers
Currency: Naira
6. Republic of Cameroon
Capital: Yaoundé
Official language: French and English
Area: 475,442 square kilometers
Currency: Central African CFA franc
7. Republic of Côte d’Ivoire
Capital: Yamoussoukro (political) and Abidjan (economic)
Official language: French
Area: 322,463 square kilometers
Currency: West African CFA franc
8. Burkina Faso
Capital: Ouagadougou
Official language: French
Area: 274,200 square kilometers
Currency: West African CFA franc
9. Republic of Ghana
Capital: Accra
Official language: English
Area: 238,535 square kilometers
Currency: Ghana cedi
10. Republic of Guinea
Capital: Conakry
Official language: French
Area: 245,836 square kilometers
Currency: Guinean franc
11. Republic of Senegal
Capital: Dakar
Official language: French
Area: 196,712 square kilometers
Currency: CFA franc
12. Republic of Benin
Capital: Porto-Novo
Official language: French
Area: 114,763 square kilometers
Currency: West African CFA franc
13. Republic of Liberia
Capital: Monrovia
Official language: English
Area: 111,369 square kilometers
Currency: Liberian dollar
14. Republic of Sierra Leone
Capital: Freetown
Official language: English
Area: 71,840 square kilometres
Currency: Leone
15. Togolese Republic
Capital: Lomé
Official language: French
Area: 56,785 square kilometers
Currency: West African CFA franc
16. Republic of Guinea-Bissau
Capital: Bissau
Official language: Portuguese
Area: 36,125 square kilometers
Currency: West African CFA franc
17. Republic of Equatorial Guinea
Capital: Malabo
Official language: Spanish
Area: 28,050 square kilometers
Currency: Central African CFA franc
18. Republic of the Gambia
Capital: Banjul
Official language: English
Area: 10,689 square kilometers
Currency: Dalasi
19. Republic of Cabo Verde
Capital: Praia
Official language: Portuguese
Area: 4,033 square kilometres
Currency: Cape Verdean escudo
20. The Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe
Capital: São Tomé
Official language: Portuguese
Area: 964 square kilometers
Currency: Dobra
21. Saint Helena
Capital: Jamestown
Official language: English
Area: 121 square kilometers
Currency: Saint Helena Pound
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