President of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission, Dr. Omar Alieu Touray, has presented the Annual Report on the State of the Community to the ECOWAS Parliament.
Dr. Touray, presented the annual report to the ECOWAS parliament, on Thursday, in Abuja.
The ECOWAS Commission President in his presentation bemoaned the unabated inflation, which he noted has deteriorated fiscal balance and heightened public debt, thereby reducing the welfare and standard of living of ECOWAS citizens.
The annual report highlighted the key achievements, challenges, as well as opportunities facing the ECOWAS region in 2023.
He attributed some of the challenges facing the community to include Geopolitical conflicts, Persistence of inflationary pressures, High and rising public debt, Tightening of monetary policies amongst others.
The report further reeled out the macro-economic situation of the region and performance of the ECOWAS Institutions with regard to the 2023 work programmes and the regional integration and development agenda globally.
Touray however acknowledged that despite a difficult international environment and the slowdown in the global economies, most of the ECOWAS Member States have posted impressive economic growth.
According to him, the ECOWAS Institutions performed well during the 2023 fiscal year, despite numerous challenges.
Speaking of opportunities at the disposal of subregional body, Touray revealed that the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), Increased investment in infrastructure and Development of the digital economy.
The recommendations included in the report are: Promotion for private sector development, Investment in human capital, Strengthening of regional cooperation and integration, as well as Enhancement of resilience to shocks.
