By Emmanuel Huleji Daudu
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) intensified efforts to improve human development across the subregion in 2024, with initiatives targeting healthcare, education, youth empowerment, gender equality, digital inclusion and community resilience.
The initiatives formed part of the regional body’s broader strategy to strengthen human capital and promote inclusive development, amid persistent challenges of poverty, unemployment, insecurity and unequal access to essential social services across West Africa.
Beyond its traditional focus on economic integration, trade liberalisation and regional security, ECOWAS continued to emphasise the importance of investing in people as a foundation for sustainable economic growth and social stability.
A major component of this approach was the Regional Integrated Human Capital Development Strategy 2020–2030, which provides a framework for member states to improve healthcare and nutrition, strengthen education and skills development, increase labour-force participation and expand opportunities in entrepreneurship, financial inclusion and the digital economy.
In June 2024, the ECOWAS Human Capital Development Secretariat conducted consultation visits to Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal, Liberia, Benin and The Gambia to assess national implementation of human capital development strategies.
The consultations also examined findings from the 2024 ECOWAS Human Capital Development Index exercise and encouraged countries to establish dedicated delivery units to improve coordination and translate policy commitments into measurable results.
The initiative underscored the organisation’s determination to make human development a central consideration in national planning, while encouraging member states to strengthen accountability for social and economic outcomes.
Healthcare remained another important area of ECOWAS’s human development interventions in 2024, particularly in improving access to essential services for women, girls and other vulnerable groups.
Through the West African Health Organization (WAHO), an ECOWAS specialised institution, the regional body continued to promote cooperation in public health, maternal healthcare, nutrition and access to medical services.
A notable intervention was the launch of a project by WAHO and the Cape Verdean Association for the Protection of the Family, VERDEFAM, on September 20, 2024, to improve healthcare for young people, particularly girls, in Cabo Verde.
The project covered Praia, Santa Catarina and Tarrafal on Santiago Island, with activities designed to improve access to sexual and reproductive health services, including family planning, pregnancy testing, prevention and treatment of sexually transmitted infections, and specialised gynaecological and obstetric consultations.
ECOWAS also supported efforts to address obstetric fistula, a serious childbirth-related condition that can cause long-term physical and social difficulties for affected women.
In 2024, the organisation provided funding support to eight member states for programmes involving surgical treatment, public awareness, rehabilitation of referral centres and the social reintegration of survivors.
The interventions highlighted the connection between healthcare, human dignity and economic development, particularly in communities where inadequate medical facilities and limited access to specialised services remain significant challenges.
ECOWAS also sustained efforts to promote gender equality and expand opportunities for women and girls, recognising that unequal access to education, healthcare, employment and productive resources continues to affect inclusive development across the region.
Through gender-focused programmes and institutional initiatives, the organisation sought to strengthen policy development and improve the availability of information for addressing gender disparities.
Its support for obstetric fistula programmes also demonstrated the importance of combining medical treatment with social reintegration to help affected women regain their confidence and participate in community life.
The regional body’s approach reflects a wider development principle that empowering women contributes to household welfare, stronger livelihoods and improved economic participation.
However, significant challenges remain, including unequal access to finance, limited economic opportunities and the underrepresentation of women in some decision-making structures.
With young people constituting a substantial proportion of West Africa’s population, ECOWAS continued to promote education, skills acquisition and youth participation as essential components of its human development agenda.
The organisation’s regional strategy prioritises education and skills development, alongside increased labour participation, entrepreneurship and access to opportunities in emerging economic sectors.
One notable activity was a training programme for women leaders from ECOWAS member states on education for a culture of peace, held at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja from June 27 to 29, 2024.
The programme strengthened participants’ capacity to promote peace, citizenship, gender awareness and community development.
Although the training focused on women leaders, it also reflected the broader importance of community-based education and peaceful participation in addressing the social conditions that affect young people and vulnerable populations.
Nevertheless, unemployment, inadequate vocational training and the mismatch between educational qualifications and labour-market requirements continued to present challenges.
Subsequent reporting on the ECOWAS Human Capital Development Index identified weaknesses in education, skills development and labour participation, reinforcing calls for stronger investment in schools, vocational institutions and employment-oriented training.
In another significant development, ECOWAS ministers adopted the Regional Resilience Strategy for West Africa 2024–2050 at a high-level meeting in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, on November 28 and 29, 2024, with support from the United Nations Development Programme.
The strategy established a long-term framework for addressing regional vulnerabilities and strengthening communities’ ability to withstand economic, environmental and security-related shocks.
Its priorities included sustainable livelihoods, social protection, gender sensitivity, social inclusion, climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction, good governance, peace and security, and macroeconomic resilience.
The strategy recognised that poverty, conflict, displacement, food insecurity and climate-related emergencies are interconnected challenges that require coordinated responses.
For example, communities affected by conflict may experience simultaneous disruptions to healthcare, education, employment and food supplies, making recovery more difficult without sustained institutional support.
By promoting regional coordination, ECOWAS and its partners sought to strengthen the capacity of governments and communities to anticipate crises, manage risks and recover from disruptions.
However, the effectiveness of the strategy will depend on adequate financing, implementation by member states and the establishment of mechanisms for measuring progress.
ECOWAS also continued to promote entrepreneurship, financial inclusion and digital development as important drivers of human development.
The organisation’s human capital strategy recognises that access to digital technology and financial services can expand economic opportunities for young people, women and small-business owners.
Digital connectivity can help entrepreneurs reach wider markets, improve access to business information and facilitate financial transactions, while also supporting access to educational resources and employment opportunities.
The ECOWAS Human Capital Development Report, published in 2025, subsequently reported an overall improvement of 12 per cent in the regional Human Capital Development Index compared with the 2022 report. Its entrepreneurship, financial inclusion and digital economy component recorded a reported 50 per cent improvement.
The figures require qualification because the underlying indicators drew on data collected between 2020 and 2022. They therefore reflect broader progress under the regional strategy rather than achievements attributable exclusively to 2024.
Nevertheless, the findings highlighted the growing importance of digital infrastructure and financial inclusion in expanding opportunities across the region.
ECOWAS faces the continuing challenge of ensuring that these benefits reach rural communities and underserved populations, rather than remaining concentrated in major urban centres.
Despite the initiatives, ECOWAS’s human development agenda continued to face significant challenges in 2024.
Unequal access to quality healthcare and education, youth unemployment, gender disparities, poverty, food insecurity and insecurity remained major obstacles to improving living standards across the subregion.
The organisation’s experience also demonstrated that adopting regional strategies does not automatically produce improvements in people’s lives. Effective implementation requires adequate funding, national ownership, reliable data and accountability.
Regional cooperation remains particularly important because many of West Africa’s development challenges transcend national borders and require collective responses.
ECOWAS’s work in human capital development, healthcare, gender equality, peace education and community resilience also supports the broader objectives of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, including those relating to poverty reduction, health, education, gender equality, decent work and reduced inequalities.
ECOWAS’s human development initiatives in 2024 demonstrated the regional organisation’s continuing effort to place people at the centre of regional integration.
Through its human capital development framework, healthcare programmes, gender-focused interventions, peace education activities and long-term resilience strategy, the organisation sought to strengthen the foundations for a healthier, more inclusive and productive West Africa.
However, the ultimate measure of these efforts will be their impact on ordinary citizens, particularly those facing poverty, unemployment, inadequate healthcare and limited educational opportunities.
For ECOWAS, the task ahead is to ensure that regional commitments translate into functional healthcare facilities, better educational outcomes, employable skills, stronger livelihoods and greater protection for vulnerable populations.
As West Africa pursues deeper integration, the region’s long-term prosperity will depend not only on the strength of its institutions and economies, but also on its ability to improve the quality of life of its people.
