00:00Exactly 50 years ago, on May 28, 1975, 15 West African countries agreed to establish
00:08the economic community of West African states, also known as ECOA's.
00:12The first leadership was handed to the former Liberian President William Tubman.
00:17Thanks to the profound work and call for unity by both the Togolese President Pnyasimbe Iadema
00:22and Nigerian former leader Yakubu Gowon, the union came into effect in West Africa.
00:27Both traversed the region, leading to the signing of the ECOA's Treaty in 1975 in Lagos by 50 nations.
00:34The Lagos Treaty was meant to enable the free movement of goods and people within the region.
00:40It was in 1990 that they abolished the use of personal identification cards while moving across the borders.
00:47Despite all its achievement, the journey has never been smooth.
00:51The three-nation bloc of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger announced last year that they were leaving the regional bloc.
00:58They then created their own security partnership known as the Alliance of Sahel States,
01:02severed military ties with the long-standing Western partners such as US and France,
01:07and turned to Russia for military support.
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