Theory question 109
West Africa and ECOWAS(a) Draw a sketch map of West Africa. On the map, locate and name; (i) one English speaking country; (ii) one French speaking country; (iii) one Portuguese speaking country; (iv) the capital cities of any two in (a)(i) – (iii). (b) Highlight three achievements of ECOWAS since inception. (c) Outline two problems working against the achievement of the objectives of ECOWAS
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(a) English: Nigeria (Abuja), Ghana (Accra), Sierra Leone (Freetown), Liberia (Monrovia), The Gambia (Banjul); French: Senegal (Dakar), Mali (Bamako), Niger (Niamey), Côte d'Ivoire, Togo (Lomé), Benin (Porto-Novo), Burkina Faso (Ouagadougou), Guinea (Conakry); Portuguese: Guinea-Bissau (Bissau), Cape Verde (Praia).
(b) Free movement of people (ECOWAS passport, visa-free travel); peace-keeping through ECOMOG (Liberia, Sierra Leone); trade liberalisation scheme; regional road projects (Trans-West African highway); ECOWAS Bank; cultural and sports exchanges; West African gas pipeline.
(c) Different currencies; language differences; political instability and coups; similar products; poor transport links; members' ties to other unions and former colonial powers; non-payment of dues.
Use a key to separate the three language groups.