The high‑level event “Building the ECOWAS Common Market: Strengthening Intra‑Regional Food Trade in West Africa” is jointly organised by the Sahel and West Africa Club (OECD/SWAC) and the ECOWAS Commission. It brings together Ministers, senior officials, regional organisations, private‑sector representatives and development partners to examine how intra‑regional food trade can be more effectively supported as a core dimension of the ECOWAS Common Market.
Intra‑regional food trade is one of the most tangible expressions of regional integration in practice. Every day, food moves across borders through regional corridors, linking producers to urban markets and supporting livelihoods, food availability and economic resilience. New OECD/SWAC analysis shows that this trade represents around USD 10 billion per year, although a large share remains insufficiently recorded and supported. Strengthening the conditions under which this trade operates is therefore central to improving food security, fostering economic growth and creating jobs across West Africa.
Over two days of dialogue, the event will focus on how the ECOWAS Common Market works in practice for food trade, including along corridors and borders, for food SMEs and for women traders who play a central role in regional markets. Discussions will address key constraints such as non‑tariff barriers, access to finance, infrastructure and data gaps, and explore how trade, agricultural, investment and free‑movement policies can be better aligned.
The event aims to generate shared policy directions to help make the ECOWAS Common Market function more effectively for food trade, grounded in evidence, practical experience and dialogue between public and private actors. It is part of a broader ECOWAS agenda to strengthen regional integration and deliver more concrete benefits for citizens and economies across West Africa.