WACIP 2010

The ambitious initiatives carried out by ECOWAS are followed by the West African Common Industrial Policy (WACIP). Through the institutions established at the national and regional levels, Member States, Civil Society, and the Private Sector are largely linked to the reforms because they are crucial to the integration process. The 2020 Vision of an"ECOWAS of people" serves as the foundation for the process, with the goal of lifting the region out of poverty and elevating all of its members to the status of respectable citizens by 2020.

The strategy WACIP, has the objective to "maintain a solid industrial structure which is globally competitive, environment-friendly and capable of significantly improving the living standards of the people by 2030." It is organised into ten (10) cohesive programs that are focused on particular major goals, such as expanding and diversifying the industrial production base, raising the industrial sector\'s GDP contribution from an average of 6-7% to 20% by 2030, significantly boosting intra-community trade from 12% to 40% in 2030, and increasing the region\'s exports of manufactured goods to the global market from 0.1% to 1% in 2030.

The West African Common Industrial Policy (WACIP) is based on a global vision to benefit from the comparative advantages of the Member States and their complementarities. Considering the imperatives of globalization and the important role industry plays in development, the ECOWAS Member States have reiterated their will to make industrialization the medium of development and have jointly undertaken to work in partnership with the private sector for the effective and efficient implementation of the West African Common Industrial Policy.