The impact of closer regional economic integration on food security in West Africa: Focus on the ECOWAS Common External Tariff

The long-delayed ECOWAS CET is now a reality, with a firm January 2015 launching. The 15 ECOWAS countries completed 10 years of negotiation on duty rates in March 2013 in Praia, Cap Verde with adoption by Heads of State in Dakar, Senegal in October 2013. This paper examines the inter-relationships between West Africa’s efforts at closer regional economic integration and its vision to achieve food security and food sovereignty, outlined in the region’s agricultural policy, the ECOWAP. Classifying agricultural products under different tariff bands is only the first step in ensuring the broader aim of a unified agricultural market. Now comes the hard work of monitoring member states’ compliance with their commitments. Photo By The Gates Foundation