ECOWAS PROTOCOL ON FREE MOVEMENT OF PERSONS, RESIDENCE AND ESTABLISHMENTS: IMPLICATIONS FOR WEST AFRICAN SECURITY (1999-2018)
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ECOWAS PROTOCOL ON FREE MOVEMENT OF PERSONS, RESIDENCE AND ESTABLISHMENTS: IMPLICATIONS FOR WEST AFRICAN SECURITY (1999-2018)
CHAPITRE ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Research
On May 28, 1975, the treaty establishing the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) was signed in Lagos. ECOWAS’ establishment represents a high level of multilateral economic integration in the West African sub-region (Okuntola, 2008).
The drafters of the treaty see the implementation of the regional cooperation agenda and the establishment of a West African economic union as a means of addressing the sub-region’s and Africa’s myriad problems of underdevelopment, which include poverty, low living standards, and weak and unstable economies (Nwoke, 2005).
As a regional economic integration organisation, ECOWAS emphasises the fusion of national markets and the coordination of economic policies of member states for larger sub-regional economic advancement,
including the removal of barriers to the free movement of persons, goods, services, and capital (Okuntola, 2008). According to Article 27 of the Community Treaty:
Citizens of member states are considered community citizens, and member states agree to remove any barriers to their freedom of movement and residence within the community.
By mutual agreement, member states shall exempt community citizens from obtaining tourist visas and residence permits and allowing them to work and engage in commercial and industrial activities on their territories (ECOWAS Treaty, 1975; Article 27).
The drive for regional integration cooperation among member states resulted in the existence of the ECOWAS protocol on free movement of persons, residence, and establishment,
which granted ECOWAS citizens the right to free entry and exist within any ECOWAS state for a maximum of 90 days, and at the expiration of the ninety (90) day he or she wishes to continue his or her stay, can apply for more days without any valid documents.
According to the treaty provisions, the community aspires to create a regional market of 16 member states for approximately 300 million customers (Dokubo, 2014).
As a result, the ECOWAS objectives clearly demonstrate that the sub-region is resolved to accelerate the region’s socioeconomic development in response to its deficiencies in the global economy.
The community gives a rare chance for ECOWAS members to unite, cooperate, and establish economic strength in order to reduce foreign dependence and develop the West African Sub-region (Okuntola, 2008; Asante, 2000).
The organization’s primary goal is to facilitate cooperation and development in the areas of economic activity, particularly in industry, transportation, telecommunications, energy, agriculture, natural resources, commerce,
monetary and financial matters, and socio-cultural matters, with the goal of raising the standard of living of ECOWAS citizens, increasing and maintaining economic stability in the region, and fostering socio-cultural development.
In this context, the ECOWAS Protocol (A/P.1//5/79) on Free Movement of Persons and the Right of Residence and Establishment was drafted on May 29, 1970, as a method of aiding the regional organization’s established objectives.
As a result, the first phase of the protocol, the protocol on free movement of persons, goods, and services, was ratified in 1980, and national committees were established in member states to monitor and assure the treaty’s implementation.
The ECOWAS Protocol on the Free Movement of People and Goods guarantees the freedom of movement of community citizens, i.e. citizens of member nations. The free movement protocol granted community citizens the ability to enter and reside in the territory of any other member state, providing they have a valid travel document and an International health certificate.
It does, however, grant member states the power to refuse admittance to any community individuals who are inadmissible under the member state’s own local legislation. The four supplementary protocols adopted between 1985 and 1990 committed member states to,
among other things, providing valid travel documents to their citizens; granting community citizens the right of residence for the sole purpose of seeking and carrying out income-earning employment;
ensuring accurate treatment for persons being expelled; not mass deporting community citizens; and limiting the grounds for individual deportation to national security, public order, or mutilation.
The following are the primary characteristics of the four additional protocols:
A/SP.1/7/85 additional protocol on the code of conduct for the execution of the Protocol on Free Movement of Persons, Right of Residence, and Establishment.
Article 2(1) requires member states to offer legitimate travel documents to their residents.
Establishes new (to Protocol Article 11) obligations for the treatment of expelled persons (Article 4).
Articles 5 and 7 list protections for unlawful immigrants.
A/SP.1/7/86 Supplementary Protocol on the Second Phase (Right of Residence)
Article 2 requires governments to provide community citizens who are nationals of another member state “the right of residence in its territory for the purpose of seeking and carrying out income-earning employment”
Conditions for residency (and hence finding and carrying out income-generating activities) in possession of an ECOWAS passport
Residence Card or Permit (Article 5) and harmonisation of laws governing the issuing of such cards/permits by member states (Article 9)
Expulsion en masse is prohibited (Article 13), and reasons for individual expulsion are limited to national security, public order or morality, public health, and non-compliance with necessary conditions of residence (Article 14).
Stipulates that migrant workers must be treated equally with citizens in areas such as job stability, participation in social and cultural activities, re-employment in certain circumstances of job loss, and training (Article 23).
A/SP.1/6/89 Supplementary Protocol modifying and supplementing Article 7 of the Protocol on Free Movement, Right of Residence, and Establishment;
Amends Protocol Article 7 provisions to confirm signatories’ commitment to settle disputes over the Protocol’s interpretation and application peacefully (Article 2).
1990 Supplementary Protocol A/SP.2/5/90 on Third Phase Implementation (Right to Establishment);
Defines the right of establishment, emphasising non-discriminatory treatment of nationals and firms from other member states, save when necessary for public order, security, or health (Articles 2-4).
Discriminatory confiscation or expropriation of assets or capital is prohibited, and fair and equitable compensation is required where such confiscation or expropriation occurs (Article 7).
However, member nations have not fully implemented the ECOWAS convention on free movement, residency, and establishment, which was established in 1979. While migrating, ECOWAS citizens are subjected to rigorous and harsh scrutiny by member states’ security agencies, resulting in the protocol’s ineffectiveness.
According to Esekumenu (2014), some issues affecting the protocol’s application include political instability in member states, terrorism, trans-border crime, poverty, underdevelopment, and the proliferation of small and light weapons, among others, which have prevented the protocol’s full implementation.
According to Ike (1999), ECOWAS commissioner for commerce, ECOWAS envisions a borderless region that integrates and creates a single currency union, which can be realised by regional collaboration and integration among member nations.
However, he stated that inter-state boundaries continue to be barriers to free movement, noting that ECOWAS citizens face stress and pain when crossing borders, and that even though visa entry has been abolished, travellers are still harassed illegally by customs and police, resulting in various economic losses.
While states continue to experience difficulty in fully implementing the ECOWAS protocol on free movement, non-state actors involved in criminal activities have been utilising the treaty to further their interests.
This is a key difficulty that has gone neglected in the literature on West African regional integration. As a result, the purpose of this research is to analyse how the measures put in place by ECOWAS member states to support free mobility affect regional security in West Africa.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
There are key issues regarding the operationalization of the protocol that member states agreed to and used as a starting point, including the lack of adequate mechanisms to control criminal infiltration; the lack of harmonisation of national migration laws and policies; and insufficient infrastructure to facilitate the realisation of borderless West Africa.
It has been discovered that ECOWAS has not put in place effective procedures to restrict the flow of illegal immigrants into member countries. This is because many people in the sub-region lack legitimate travel documentation, including their birth certificates.
This has been used by individuals/non-state actors to engage in criminal activities such as internet fraud, money laundering, human trafficking, and so on (Castle, 2014). There are also worries that the protocol’s privileges have been exploited by some sub-regional people. Smuggling of goods and illegal drug trade are two examples of abuses.
These economic sabotage crimes and deeds have engendered hostility among officials and the general public in the destination countries. Ghana and Nigeria, for example, have taken precautionary measures.
Ghana formed a Border Patrol Unit inside the Ghana Immigration Service to police its borders, but Nigeria elected to close its borders for the time being to counter economic and security concerns.
Prior to the protocol’s implementation, the sub-regional organisation also failed to secure harmonisation of national migration legislation. This has had a negative impact on the seamless execution of the protocol on free movement of people.
The various and diverse social, political, security, and economic backgrounds of the member nations were not taken into account when the protocol was enacted, resulting in revocation of the treaty and expulsion of non-nationals in difficult economic times by some member states.
Another difficulty is that the sub-region’s insufficient infrastructure does not facilitate effective movement. At the time the protocol went into effect, road networks were limited to national borders,
and little effort was made to build road and rail networks outside national borders in order to promote effective human traffic movement. Perhaps appropriate preparations were not made to support the protocol’s easy and successful implementation for the benefit of citizens.
It is also worth noting that the member-states have varying levels of economic development, which has hampered the realisation of free movement of people within the sub-region. In light of this, the movement is towards certain nodes of economic development, putting undue security risk and burden on those economies.
Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Senegal, and Ghana (most recently) have been on the receiving end of major population transfers. To avoid people of some nations becoming an economic and security burden on a few member states, emphasis should have been concentrated on accelerating economic growth and poverty reduction in the various countries.
The language difficulties that exist between the sub-region’s Anglophone and Francophone countries, as well as the colonial masters’ vested interests, have hampered the full implementation of the treaty with the ECOWAS sub-region.
As a result, the focus of the study is to critically examine the ECOWAS protocol on free movement of persons, residency, and establishment in relation to the implications for West African security from 1999 to 2018.
1.3 Research Questions
The following research questions will be posed for the purposes of this study:
To what extent do ECOWAS member nations work together to implement the protocol on free movement, residence, and establishment?
What is the connection between the ECOWAS protocol on free movement of persons and transnational security?
iii. What obstacles and problems are impeding the successful implementation of the ECOWAS protocol on free movement of people?
What solutions has ECOWAS put in place to overcome the obstacles to full implementation of the ECOWAS Protocol’s Articles?
1.4 Purpose of the Research
The primary goal of this research is to investigate the ECOWAS protocol on free movement of individuals, housing, and establishments, as well as its consequences for West African security.
The secondary goals are as follows:
To assess the level of cooperation among ECOWAS member nations in fulfilling the protocol’s objectives on free movement, residency, and establishment.
To investigate and assess the relationship between the ECOWAS Protocol on Free Movement of Persons and transnational security.
iii. Identifying the elements and problems impeding successful implementation of the ECOWAS protocol on free movement of people.
Examine the primary tactics used by ECOWAS to overcome hurdles to the full execution of the Articles as embodied in the ECOWAS treaty.
1.5 Significance of the Research
The study’s value is both theoretical and practical. The study’s theoretical relevance is that it investigates the ramifications of cross-border crimes in West African member states in terms of national security and external relations.
Furthermore, it will provide a framework mechanism for international relations researchers and students to comprehend the application of international relations theories such as integration and Neo Functionalism theory, as employed in this study, to global community situations.
The study will emphasise the importance of reorganising the protocol to fill the gaps revealed by the investigation. By doing so, the study adds to the current body of literature or widens the frontiers of knowledge through its findings, and thus serves as a source of data and material for future researchers in areas outside the purview of this study.
Practically, the study will highlight the importance of the ECOWAS protocol on free movement, residence, and establishment by allowing both students and government parastatals in charge of inter-country relations to see the protocol’s utility.
It would also be extremely beneficial to the Nigerian government, security advisers, defence advisers, economic advisers, policymakers, and regional institutions such as the AU and ECOWAS. The research is also timely and relevant.
1.6 Scope and Limitations of The Study
The research spans the years 1999 to 2018. The study focuses on border security and the ECOWAS convention on free movement of people. It investigates the relationship between border security and the West African ECOWAS protocol on free movement of people. The ideal of the protocol on free movement of people has been marked by a number of issues, which this book also aims to analyse.
This paper focuses on ECOWAS as a regional integrative device in the West African subregion. An attempt is made to study ECOWAS’s role in promoting economic growth and development in West Africa with the goal of recognising its accomplishments, difficulties, and opportunities.
This work is constrained by a number of constraints, including time, space/location, and methodological challenges. A study of this sort necessitates the researcher travelling along and across other West African borders to gain firsthand expertise and data on the subject topic.
The costs of such a journey in relation to the researcher’s limited time constitute a significant limitation to this work, but have no bearing on its substance.
1.7 Definition of Term
ECOWAS Protocol: In May 1979, the ECOWAS States adopted their first protocol on free movement, residence, and establishment. It established the right of ECOWAS people to enter,
remain, and conduct economic activity on the territory of other member states and provides a three-step pathway of five years each to achieve freedom of movement of persons after fifteen years.
The first phase dealt with the ability to enter without a visa, the second with the right to reside, and the third with the right to establish in another member state (ECOWAS, 2005).
West Africa: West Africa is Africa’s westernmost region. Western Africa is defined by the United Nations as Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, the Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo, as well as the United Kingdom Overseas Territories of Saint Helena,
Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha. As of 2017, the population of West Africa was expected to be 381,981,000, with 189,672,000 females and 192,309,000 males (Wikipedia, 2019).
Security refers to the practise of removing any threat to individuals and their valuable assets. This is why, according to Barry Buzan, security is about freedom from threat and the ability of states to maintain independent identity and functional integrity against forces of change that they perceive as hostile, while the bottom line is survival (Bodunde, et al, 2014).
Based on the foregoing, security is generally agreed to be about feeling safe from harm, fear, anxiety, oppression, danger, poverty, defence protection, and preservation of care values and threat to t
William (2008) likewise contends that security is most usually connected with the alleviation of risks to valued values, specifically those threats which endanger the survival of a particular reference object.
Free Movement of Person: Freedom of movement, mobility rights or the right to travel is a human rights concept comprising the right of individuals to travel from place to place within a territory of a country, and to leave the country and return to it. The right covers not only visiting places, but changing the place where the individual resides or work.
Such a right is granted in the constitutions of various states, and in document reflecting rules of international law and regional and sub-regional accords. For instances, Article 13 of the Universal Declaration of Human rights claim that:
– A citizen has the right to leave any country, including his or her own, and to return to his or her homeland at any time.
In the same vain Article 2(1) of ECOWAS Protocol assert that:
Member nations are under legal obligation to offer proper travel documents to their resident (Anadi, 2005).
Integration: Integration has a multi-dimensional perspective. Two representative perceptions are offered. Ojo et al (1985) perceived integration as the situation whereby two or more individuals or groups come in contact with each other to related primarily for cooperation,
supportive of other positive reasons Doherty and Pfalzgraff (Jnr.) (1997) referred to integration as a process whereby political actors in several distinct national setting are persuaded to shift their loyalties, expectations and political activities towards a new centre whose instructions demand jurisdiction over the pre-existing national states.
Development is a comprehensive word that encompasses social, economic, political, and human development. Human development serves as the foundation for the first three principles. Burkey (1993:38) asserts that economic and political progress must be accompanied by social development.
Development, as a broad term, has been intensively researched in order to achieve economic growth and social development. However, the emphasis on industrial and economic development as defining elements in societal transformation has altered.
Economic growth may provide tangible gain to people, but development is primarily concerned with improving the lives of all members of society (Edwards 1993:80).
The emphasis shifted from holistic development theory to local engagement and empowerment (Mohan and Stokke 2000:247). The essential concept of such a phenomenon is the control of processes by individuals. Todaro and Smith (2006:16) agree with Edward that something is wrong if a development strategy results in substantial economic
growth and political stability without a considerable improvement in the quality of life for the majority of people. High growth performance without participation from the people is plainly economic growth without development.
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is a regional organisation of 15 West African countries founded on May 28, 1975, with the primary purpose of promoting economic integration among its members.
Indeed, ECOWAS is one of the African Economic Community’s (AEC) five regional pillars. ECOWAS has three official languages: English, French, and Portuguese (International Democracy Watch, 2019).
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