A two-day capacity building workshop on the role of non-state actors in the West African sub-regional integration process for 40 participants opened at Abesim near Sunyani on Thursday.
It was organised by the Integrated Social Development Centre (ISODEC) in collaboration with Brong-Ahafo Network of Non-Governmental Organisations (BANGO).
The workshop, among other things is geared towards the realization of Customs Union (CU) and Common Marketing in West Africa.
Participants included private business people, civil servants, media practitioners and representatives of security agencies.
Topics to be treated include “The background of the Economic Commission of West Africa States (ECOWAS) Project”, “The vision 2020, objectives, structures and institutions” and “ECOWAS Trade
Liberalization Scheme”.
Others are; “The role, challenges and the way forward for CEPS in the regional integration process” and “The role, challenges and way
forward for the Ghana Immigration Service in the regional integration process”.
The facilitators and resource persons include Mr. Sylvester Bagooro, Dr. Yakubu Zakaria, Kojo Asamoah, all from ISODEC and Mr.
George Akpetor from the Ghana Revenue Authority (Customs Division), as well as a representative from the Ghana Immigration Service.
In a brief on the background of the ECOWAS project, Mr Bagooro said the rationale for the study through such workshops was driven by
ISODEC which had embarked on a campaign to promote ECOWAS regional integration through facilitating people’s realization and
participation.
He noted that the study had generated information on the state of the ECOWAS Customs Union and Common market, the protocol on the free
movement of persons, goods and services and the current ECOWAS vision:
‘From ECOWAS of States to ECOWAS of People’, providing guidelines for raising awareness and consciousness of specific groups within Ghana on
ECOWAS issues.
Mr. Bagooro mentioned Free Trade Area, Customs Union, Common Market, Economic Union and Political Union, in that order, as the five
stages of regional integration.
He said the aim of ECOWAS was to promote cooperation and integration leading to the establishment of an Economic Union to help
raise the living standards of people in the sub-region.