The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission and the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) are seeking to strengthen their partnership to improve development financing and accelerate regional projects across West Africa.

The discussions took place on November 2 at EBID's headquarters in Lomé, Togo, during a meeting led by the Vice-President of the ECOWAS Commission, Anthony Oluwatosin Ogunjimi.

Ogunjimi presented the Commission's priorities under ECOWAS Vision 2050 and proposed deeper collaboration in three areas: a regional fund supported by contributions from Community institutions, the Human Capital Development Programme and the Community Development Programme.

A major focus was the Human Capital Development Catalytic Investment Fund, a revolving financing mechanism designed to support young people and women with business ideas.

The pilot phase of the initiative in Togo has secured funding and is expected to commence, while proposed pilot programmes in Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone are seeking additional resources.

The two institutions also discussed developing a regional investment pipeline under the Community Development Programme, with the objective of identifying and preparing projects for implementation by 2027.

Another key issue was the role of the ECOWAS Community Levy in strengthening the region's capacity to finance its development priorities and reduce dependence on external assistance amid declining development funding.

EBID's leadership expressed readiness to deploy its technical and resource mobilisation teams to support the proposed areas of cooperation.

Both institutions agreed to move beyond preliminary discussions and begin technical work on implementation arrangements, responsibilities and timelines.

The process is expected to follow a formal cooperation letter from the ECOWAS Commission.

The meeting did not announce specific funding commitments or a financial value for the proposed regional fund.

EBID, headquartered in Lomé, is the development finance institution of ECOWAS, providing funding and technical assistance for public and private sector projects aimed at promoting economic growth and regional integration.