Monrovia Hosts the Afcfta Meeting for the Network of Economic Journalists of West Africa

5 February 2019
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United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (Addis Ababa)

Monrovia (Liberia) — The proceedings of a workshop on African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) for members of the Network of Economic Journalists for West Africa were launched Tuesday in Monrovia, Liberia, on the initiative of the Sub-Regional Office for West Africa of the United Nations Economic Commission for West Africa (SRO-WA/ECA). This meeting, which will be held on February 5-7, 2018 was organised in collaboration with the Government of Liberia and the Commissions of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU).

The overall objective of the SRO-WA/ECA through the organisation of this meeting is to promote a better understanding of the AfCFTA by the media of the West African sub-region in order to improve advocacy for its ratification and its implementation.

Through this strategy of relying on the media from the West African sub-region, the SRO-WA/ECA seeks to actively engage these journalists in advocacy for the ratification and implementation of the AfCFTA.

This three-day workshop will take place in the form of presentations made by experts from the ECA, ECOWAS and independent speakers on the AfCFTA, as well as exchanges of information and views by the participants.

For the Deputy Minister of Administration for the Ministry of Commerce and Industry of Liberia, Mr.Wilfrid N. Bangura "The organization of this workshop for the medias of West Africa is a good new for the African continent".

For his part, Mr. Tei Konzi, Commissioner for Trade, Customs and Free Movement, said that a study of the AfCFTA on the ECOWAS member states under the supervision of the Commission is underway and that the conclusions will help make substantial decisions for the rest of the discussions. "The creation of a sub-regional environment without borders, where resources are available and accessible to businesses and individuals, remains a central element of the ECOWAS strategy for shared prosperity and the vision of an 'ECOWAS of people' rather than an 'ECOWAS of states'," said Mr. Tei Konzi.

As for the Acting Director of the SRO-WA/ECA, Mr. Bakary Dosso, he affirmed that "the responsible and dynamic partnership with the media of the sub-region should enable better advocacy for the ratification and the implementation of the AfCFTA as well as higher visibility and dissemination of the implementation of the ECOWAS Community Development Plan (CDP), the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the African Union Agenda 2063".

Through this network, these journalists will be responsible for producing articles and programs on the AfCFTA, ensuring media coverage of the major events of the ECA in West Africa (Intergovernmental Committee of Experts, Ad Hoc Experts' Group Meetings, the Sub-Regional Coordination Mechanism, regional meetings, etc.), to support advocacy actions and to disseminate more widely the results and recommendations from the activities of the ECA in West Africa.

This meeting is being attended by 33 journalists from Benin, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Côte d'Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo.

Note to editors

The Sub-Regional Office for West Africa of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA/SRO-WA) is one of five sub-regional offices in Africa. Located in Niamey, Niger, ECA/SRO-WA covers all 15 Member States of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS): Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo.

The efforts of the ECA/SRO-WA are geared towards strengthening sub-regional cooperation and integration in West Africa, aligned with the priorities of the African Union, the New Partnership for the Development of Africa (NEPAD), and the international development goals, including those contained in the Millennium Declaration. The ECA/SRO-WA also coordinates the position of Member States on various economic and social development issues. The ECA/SRO-WA works in close partnership with the institutions responsible for facilitating sub-regional economic groups, namely the ECOWAS and the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU), as well as with sectoral intergovernmental institutions, the private sector and civil society organisations.

For more information, please contact: Tahirou Gouro, Communication Officer, ECA- SRO/WA Email: gouro2@un.org.

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