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From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
The Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, has said that the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) needs “functional integration” to expand trade through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
Kalu, according to a statement by his Special Assistant,Press Affairs,Udora Orizu, stated this, at a Parliamentary Seminar titled “Deepening Regional Integration Through AfCFTA: Opportunities and Challenges for Expanding Intra-Community Trade Within ECOWAS.” , on Monday, in Abuja.
The deputy speaker noted that while intra-African trade rose to $220.3 billion (16%) in 2025, intra-ECOWAS trade remains stagnant at 11.5%, despite the region’s vast $3.4 trillion market potential.
Kalu, while lamenting that logistical and administrative bottlenecks continue to undermine progress, stated bridging the gap between aspiration and reality requires deliberate action, particularly in infrastructure and enforcement.
He noted that the Abidjan–Lagos corridor, which in his view, is the backbone of the regional economy, is an unfinished promise, stating that beyond physical infrastructure, administrative inefficiencies pose even greater challenges.
“In today’s geopolitical climate, AfCFTA is no longer just a trade agreement; it has become the strategic engine that must power Africa’s industrial resilience and survival. In a world of fragmenting global supply chains, Africa must trade with itself to thrive.
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“While intra-African trade successfully climbed to $220.3 billion (16%) in 2025, our ECOWAS sub-region remained stuck at 11.5%. We are talking about a $3.4 trillion market potential, yet we still struggle to move a truck from Lagos to Abidjan.
“To bridge the gap between our high-level aspirations and our regional reality, we must, as a matter of urgency, transition from the diplomacy of ‘Paper Integration’ to the tangible impact of ‘Functional Integration.’
“This requires a relentless focus on two critical levers:1. Infrastructures and the Implementation Gap1 The Abidjan-Lagos corridor, which is the backbone of our regional economy, remains an unfinished promise. But currently, it is not just the potholes that cost us; it is the administrative friction.
“We can build a six-lane highway, but if a truck spends 14 hours at a border due to red tape, that highway is just an expensive parking lot.We don’t just need a mechanism to report Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs); we need a regional body with actual enforcement powers to penalise the bureaucratic delays that strangle our supply chains,” Kalu stated.
Furthermore,the deputy speaker implored ECOWAS leaders to adopt a pragmatic approach on monetary integration.
According to him, “For decades, we have chased the dream of a single currency (the Eco).It is time for a reality check. Total macroeconomic convergence is a 20th-century mirage. Instead, we need to strategically direct our energy toward the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS).
“The reality is that PAPSS provides some of the key benefits of a single currency; including instant settlement in local currencies, without the loss of national sovereignty. It also eliminates the ‘Dollar-dependency’ that costs Africa $5 billion annually in transaction fees. Why wait in perpetuity for a shared banknote when we can solve the payment problem today with a digital switch?’
