The ECOWAS Committee convened high-level virtual consultations with member states, local community partners and development stakeholders on May 6, 2025 through the Department of Humanitarian and Social Affairs to review and enrich the draft of the ECOWAS Labour Migration Strategy and Action Plan (2025–2035).
The pre-verification meeting represents an important step towards finalizing a strategy designed to strengthen governance of labor mobility across the ECOWAS region.
Fixed in ECOWAS Vision 2050 and protocols on the free movement of people, the strategy has been developed through a participatory and comprehensive approach involving member states, the African Union Commission (AUC), the International Labour Organization (ILO), and the International Migration Organization (IOM), and is supported by the Joint Labour Migration Programme (JLMP), European Unions, and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency.
The committee reaffirms that the labour migrant strategy constitutes a strategic response to the current migrant dynamics in West Africa, reflecting ECOWAS's commitment to advancing human mobility as a driver of regional integration, economic development and social inclusion. It also highlighted the importance of aligning the strategy with AU-Agenda 2063 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The consultation focused on five strategic pillars of the strategy. Promoting regular migration and labor migration. Protection of the rights of migrant workers. Maximizing the impact on immigration development. Gender and social inclusion; Improvement of local cooperation and institutional capacity.
This document, which integrates the local legal framework and new priorities, is presented in detail by lead consultants, highlighting West Africa hosting more than 8.2 million international migrants.
Member state representatives welcomed drafts and provided constructive input, particularly on harmony of labor mobility data, ethical recruitment practices, diaspora involvement, and promotion of remittance flows. Several member states sought greater investment in national capacity building and alignment of national policy with regional frameworks.
During the session, Albert Siau Boaten, director of the People and Immigration Freedom Movement, highlighted ECOWAS's ongoing advocacy efforts and technical work with the National Immigration Services. He noted the importance of being an “Ecowas Vision Ambassador” and called for collective responsibility to raise awareness of local rights and obligations.
Social partners, including representatives from trade unions and employer organizations, highlighted the need for gender-responsive budgeting, reintegration pathways for returnees, and protection of low-skilled and informal sector migrant workers. The action plan, which approves more than 130 activities mapped to specific outcomes and implementation responsibilities, was praised as a robust and viable roadmap.
According to a report distributed by the APO Group on behalf of the Economic Communities of West African Countries (ECOWAS), the results of the virtual consultations inform the draft revised draft of the ECOWAS Labour Migration Strategy and Action Plan, presented at the in-person verification workshop in Accra, Ghana from May 13th to 13th, 2025.
It also added that the ECOWAS Committee has repeatedly reaffirmed its commitment to promoting safe, regular, rights-based labor migrants for the benefit of all ECOWAS citizens, repeatedly carrying out the continued cooperation of all partners and participants.
gik/apa
