The Hypocritical State of West Africa’s Unification

Over 200 million people live in West Africa. Majority of the 16 states that comprise the region believe in the notion that there should be integration. But civil unrest and the fight against corruption have been militating against the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the regional body established specifically for the achievement of this objective. Since inception in 1975, ECOWAS has done so much to effect the needed change but this has not translated into the desired assimilation.