Latest news with #MassandjeTOURELITSE
Zawya
3 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission experts receive training to improve coordination towards accelerated reform of digital trade
ECOWAS, with the support of UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), organized an e-trade reform tracker (eTRT) training in Lagos, Nigeria, on Monday 14th July, 2025. The eTRT is an innovative digital tool that will support implementing agencies in tracking progress, coordinating actions, and enhancing accountability in the implementation of e-commerce reforms. In his remarks at the opening ceremony of the training, Mr. Kolawole Sofola, Director of Trade at ECOWAS Commission, on behalf of Madame Massandjé TOURE-LITSE, ECOWAS Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture, stated that this session offers a hands-on opportunity to explore how the Tracker works, how it can be used to streamline internal and inter-departmental coordination, and how it can help generate reliable data for monitoring and evaluation. This will be especially valuable as ECOWAS moves toward the operationalization of the Regional E-Commerce Committee, which will serve as the broader governance platform for the regional e-commerce agenda. 'I encourage all participants, particularly our focal points from key implementing directorates and agencies, to engage actively, ask questions, and explore how the tool can be applied within your respective mandates. I am confident that today's training will equip us with a shared understanding of how to work smarter, together, to deliver the ambitions of the ECOWAS E-Commerce strategy'. The objective of the E-Trade Reform Tracker training and workshop was to familiarize key directorates in the ECOWAS Commission with the structure and functionalities of the eTRT, promote utilization of the eTRT in the regular follow-up of the ECOWAS ECS implementation, and strengthen coordination of the implementation of the ECS. The training was conducted for the ECOWAS internal working group on e-commerce with the following key agencies and directorates from the ECOWAS Commission in attendance: Directorates of Trade, Free Movement of Persons and Migration, Customs Union and Taxation, Private Sector, Macroeconomic Stability and Multilateral Surveillance, Communications, as well as the ECOWAS Regional Competition Authority, the ECOWAS Gender Development Center and the ECOWAS Youth and Sports Center who were in attendance. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
Zawya
03-07-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Promoting inclusive regional trade: Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) mobilises stakeholders along the Abidjan–Lagos corridor to support women traders
The ECOWAS Commission launched on Monday in Abidjan the third edition of its regional information and awareness campaign for small-scale cross-border women traders along the Abidjan–Lagos corridor. This initiative, which will run until 15 July 2025, aims to strengthen women's economic participation in regional trade by improving their access to information, training, and a safer trading environment. The Department of Human Development and Social Affairs and the Department of Economic Affairs and Agriculture of the ECOWAS Commission are co-organising the third edition of the Information and Awareness Campaign for small-scale cross-border women traders along the Abidjan–Lagos corridor, from 30 June to 15 July 2025. The objective of this campaign is to build on the achievements and results of the 2023 and 2024 editions conducted along the Tema–Paga and Dakar–Banjul–Bissau corridors, in order to facilitate cross-border trade and improve operations for small-scale women traders by strengthening their knowledge and understanding of the regulations governing cross-border trade and related regional initiatives. As part of the implementation of this campaign, an official launch ceremony—co-chaired by the Minister of Trade and Industry and the Minister of Women, Family and Children—was held on 30 June 2025 at the NOOM Hotel in Abidjan. The ceremony was graced by the effective participation of H.E. Mrs. Massandjé TOURE-LITSE, ECOWAS Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture. The official launch of the information and awareness campaign was preceded by a public Town Hall meeting focused on raising awareness about ECOWAS cross-border trade policies and strategies, capacity building for women traders, the toolkit designed for small-scale cross-border women traders (border transparency and the fight against gender-based violence), and GIZ initiatives to boost intra-regional agri-food trade, improve coordination of regional policies, strengthen economic integration, and ensure food security. The launch event also saw the participation of the ECOWAS Resident Representative in Côte d'Ivoire, the ECOWAS National Office in Côte d'Ivoire, the Abidjan Chamber of Commerce, representatives of associations of small-scale cross-border women traders, and technical and financial partners. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
