By Ferdinand Olise

A member of the ECOWAS Parliament from Liberia, Ms Moima Briggs-Mensah, has called for concerted efforts for reformsthat will strengthen the powers of the regional legislature.

According to Ms Briggs-Mensah, this will help the regional legislature to play a more decisive role in shaping policies across West Africa.

Speaking during an interview on the sidelines of the 2026 Second Extraordinary Session and Second Seminar of the ECOWAS Parliament in Accra, Ghana, Ms Briggs-Mensah said the Parliament’s advisory status had constrained its ability to influence decisions on critical issues affecting citizens, including climate change, environmental degradation, migration and regional trade.

She urged elected representatives to ensure that decisions reached by the Parliament are implemented.

“I don’t think you can have parliament members that are elected by the country and their constituents come and sit there and just be advisable to a few people that are just appointed by one president,” she said.

She also urged ECOWAS to review the legal and institutional framework of the Parliament and give it a stronger legislative and financial authority.

According to her, lawmakers should be able to determine and approve the Parliament’s budget rather than merely make recommendations to other regional institutions.

“We should have outstanding rules that ECOWAS Parliament, that we can adopt issues that we can even pass the budget. We also can approve the budget,” she said.

She further stated that, strengthening the Parliament would enhance accountability and enable lawmakers to take greater ownership of policies adopted at the regional level.

While advocating for common ECOWAS policies to address climate change, land degradation and the growing impact of climate-related displacement on communities, she also said that the parliamentary seminar provided an opportunity to examine challenges confronting the region which needs serious implementation process.

She therefore called for regional funding mechanisms to assist countries and communities affected by floods, environmental degradation and other climate-related disasters.
She further stated that women and children are particularly exposed to the consequences of climate-related emergencies, especially where flooding disrupts farming, transportation and cross-border trade.

She explained that women traders could lose their goods when flooding prevents them from reaching markets or crossing borders.
She also urged regional authorities to make greater use of lawmakers’ grassroots knowledge, particularly on issues affecting women involved in cross-border commerce.

By Ferdinand Olise

The Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, has commenced its Startup Awards programme designed to connect promising businesses with investment, markets and opportunities to scale across the region.

Speaking in Abuja at the Second ECOWAS Startup Awards, the Acting Director of Private Sector and Industry at the ECOWAS Commission, Mr. Peter Oluonye, said the initiative was structured to address key challenges facing start-ups, particularly access to finance, markets, technology and growth opportunities.

The selected businesses included various sectors including agri-tech, food and health technology, agriculture, clean and climate technology, tourism, hospitality and travel technology.

According to Mr. Oluonye, more than 10,000 entrepreneurs attempted to register for the 2026 programme, with 1,499 applications successfully processed, and 60 startups selected for the masterclass and regional competition.

“Startups will always start, but the challenge will be scaling the growth path,” Mr Oluonye said, stressing that access to finance was critical to business expansion. The top three winners will receive $30,000, $20,000 and $15,000 respectively.”, he said.

He further said the 60 participants would be reduced to 20 during the regional finals, with the finalists competing for the top awards. He noted that all the 60 participants would benefit from a six-month acceleration programme, including capacity building, mentorship, investor access and business-to-business engagements.

The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Chris Osa Isokpunwu, who represented the Minister of State for Industry, Senator John Enoh, identified access to finance, infrastructure and regulatory barriers as major constraints to business growth.

He noted that Nigeria remained committed to strengthening the environment for entrepreneurship, investment, trade and innovation.

According to Dr. Isokpunwu, Nigeria’s Start-up Act provides a framework for incentives, regulatory support, funding and export facilitation.
He added that the ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme and the African Continental Free Trade Area provide opportunities for businesses to access wider markets.

Also, the ECOWAS Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture, Dehpue Zuo, said the programme’s value went beyond prize money to include mentorship, investor access, regional visibility and post-event support.

He said the participants had received training in business validation, market access, regional expansion, investment readiness, fundraising and pitching. He also emphasised that the programme is also promoting inclusive entrepreneurship, with a significant proportion of the finalists being women-led businesses.

He added that the region’s challenge was not a shortage of entrepreneurial talent, but connecting innovative ideas to capital, markets, technology and growth opportunities.

The National Coordinator of the International Trade Centre, ITC, in Nigeria, Natasha Akionye, said entrepreneurs needed the skills, finance, networks and market opportunities to become competitive.

Meanwhile, the European Union representative to Nigeria and ECOWAS said startups required an enabling ecosystem supported by access to finance, reliable infrastructure, digital connectivity, skills and predictable regulation.

On her part, one of the Nigerian participants, Faith Ukeme-Essien of Akwa Ibom State, said the initiative is helping communities preserve their history and develop tourism opportunities, including training community members as tour operators.

She informed that her business is developing skills in aviation, tourism and hospitality, while creating employment opportunities.