Browsing: ECOWAS

• ECOWAS member states fed 22.4 million school-going children in 2022, up from 20 million learners in 2020.
• This represents 42% of the 53 million school children in Sub-Saharan Africa who were fed through school feeding programs last year.
• School feeding intervention, as it happens in Rwanda, can immensely boost agriculture, education, health and nutrition, and social protection sectors. 

The past two years have seen West African countries grapple with a number of crises driven by conflict, climate shocks, and a slow recovery from COVID-19 economic fallout worsened by the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. 

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) member States are, however, defying these tough economic times, emerging as having fed the largest number of school-aged children in Africa.

According to The 2022 State of School Feeding Worldwide report, Ecowas member states fed 22.4 million school-going children in 2022. This was an increase from 20 million children fed

• Across Africa, a direct correlation exists between income levels and energy use.
• Poor households are often constrained to rely on environmentally detrimental fossil fuels like charcoal and firewood for energy.
• With better incomes, African households can transition to cleaner energy alternatives such as natural gas.

The pioneering work of Kraft and Kraft in the mid-20th century established a link between energy consumption and economic growth in the USA. Drawing on similar principles, recent research has highlighted a direct connection between income levels and energy consumption patterns in Africa.

This article delves into the intricate relationship between income and energy use in Africa and emphasizes the pivotal role of financial inclusion in addressing poverty and climate change.

The link between income and energy consumption

The fundamental theory of consumption posits that household income shapes consumption habits, encompassing not only food but also energy sources. Notably, a direct correlation exists between…

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) boasts of some of Africa's largest economies, but like many economies of the world, the 15 member states of ECOWAS are facing both endemic and global challenges that could undermine the region’s economic growth in in 2023.

While two years ago in 2020, before the global pandemic struck, a majority of ECOWAS countries were enjoying the commodity boom with the region’s three of its largest economies - Nigeria, Ghana, and Côte d’Ivoire - accounting for one-fourth of Africa’s GDP.

Unfortunately, short of a change in the global economic projection, it will be a challenge for these West African countries to replicate the pre-pandemic growth. The global economic forecast paints a depressed economy in2023 and at best sluggish growth for more diversified economies, spilling over from the after math of the pandemic, the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war and widespread inflation.  

A global analysis released

Africa is huge continent with untapped potential. With the rest of the world opening up for the best international trade and travel relations, Africa is learning and following the same path, with countries such as Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda easing entry restrictions by issuing visa on arrival and hence turning themselves towards open borders opportunities as members of the East African Community (EAC). 

Unrestricted movement of people and goods between African countries holds the key to unlocking this trade potential. That is why trade analysts are touting the African Continent Free Trade Area (AfCTA) as a game changer in inter-Africa trade.  

According to United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Intra-African trade is currently low at 14.4 percent of total African exports. UNCTAD estimates that the AfCFTA could boost intra-African trade by about 33 percent and cut the continent’s trade deficit by 51 percent.

The possibility of more open

Every African region has felt the effects of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with West Africa also bearing the burden of a war miles away in Europe.

• At a period when West Africa has been facing a severe food crisis since 2011, the Ukraine conflict has complicated matters further.
• For most West African nations, the expenses of regulating rising prices are already too high.
• The West African economic crisis and the Russia-Ukraine scenario highlight the perilous linkages between diplomatic sanctions, commerce, and food security.

Africa's post-Covid recovery hampered

The Russian-Ukrainian conflict has hampered Africa's potential recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic by raising food and fuel costs, interrupting the trade of services and goods, constricting fiscal space, limiting green transitions, and slowing the flow of development funding across the continent.

The crisis has jeopardized homes, communities, and nations across Africa. Before 2020, African countries were among the world's fastest-growing. The COVID-19 pandemic…

The European Union (EU) and Nigeria have enjoyed robust trade and bilateral relations since the formulation of this lucrative partnership, and remains its most important trading partner for oil and non-oil exports. In cognizance of Nigeria’s strategic importance as Africa’s most populous nation, and one of the largest economies; the EU’s cooperation with the country aims to enhance growth and stability to achieve social equity, hence their partnership has been rooted in shared values and interests since inception. In addition, Nigeria is also a key beneficiary of the EU’s Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).

To boot, the EU has recently renewed its commitment, pledging to continue to pursue with increased vigour, its bilateral engagement and friendship with Nigeria I n order to deliver better and to make the partnership more fruitful. This comes after the trade volume between the European Union and Nigeria, increased by 25.8 per cent to peak at…