Ablakwa calls for practical measures to enhance free movement across W/A sub-region

On Friday 16th October, 2026 the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa inaugurated Ghana’s National Consultative Committee on Regional Integration (NCCRI), a national coordination mechanism established to strengthen Ghana’s engagement with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and ensure that regional integration delivers tangible benefits to citizens.

Delivering his remarks, Ablakwa emphasised the importance of improving coordination among various Ministries, Departments, Agencies, and stakeholders in implementing ECOWAS decisions, policies, and programmes. He reaffirmed Ghana's commitment to regional integration, highlighting its ties to the country's prosperity, security, and development.

Acknowledging ECOWAS's successes in promoting free movement, trade liberalisation, and regional cooperation, Mr Ablakwa stressed the need to address citizens' daily concerns, particularly those of traders, entrepreneurs, and travellers facing border challenges.

He called for practical measures to enhance free movement across the sub-region and for Ghana to gain more commercial and developmental benefits from its ECOWAS contributions.

The NCCRI will act as the central national platform for strategic guidance on regional integration, facilitating information sharing, monitoring ECOWAS policy implementation, and reviewing Ghana's commitments. It will also address implementation gaps, citizen and business concerns, and prepare for ECOWAS meetings.

The Minister further noted that, the Committee’s work would be supported by two complementary structures inaugurated earlier in the week: the Sector Programming Committee (SPC) for technical inputs on sectoral policies and programmes, and the Community Levy and Finance Committee (CLFC) for financial matters.

In his welcome remarks, Ambassador Francis Danti Kotia, Coordination Director for Multilateral and International Organisations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, described the inauguration as a significant milestone in addressing coordination gaps in Ghana's regional integration efforts. He highlighted regional integration's potential to expand trade, facilitate movement, improve access to resources, and strengthen shared cooperation.