The Commission of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has released on Tuesday, 9 June 2026, the 2025–2027 edition of its **Regional Economic Outlook (REO)**, a flagship report that analyses macroeconomic developments across the region and highlights the challenges and opportunities related to food security and regional integration.
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This new publication comes at a time when the international environment is characterized by a moderate global economic recovery, persistent geopolitical tensions, inflationary pressures, and growing uncertainties affecting global supply chains. The report reviews the recent economic performance of ECOWAS Member States, assesses medium-term growth prospects, and proposes strategic policy directions aimed at fostering inclusive and sustainable development across the region.
According to the report, the West African economy has demonstrated remarkable resilience in recent years. Regional real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth is estimated at 4.3 percent in 2024, up from 3.6 percent in 2023. This positive momentum is expected to continue throughout the 2025–2027 period, with projected growth rates of 4.8 percent in 2025, 5.0 percent in 2026, and 7.1 percent in 2027, driven in particular by the expansion of the energy sector, extractive industries, infrastructure development, and financial and digital services.
The report nevertheless highlights several risks that continue to weigh on the region’s economic outlook. These include persistent inflationary pressures, vulnerabilities associated with public debt, the impacts of climate change, disruptions to trade flows, as well as geopolitical and security-related uncertainties.
The 2025–2027 edition places special emphasis on food security, identified as one of the major development challenges facing West Africa. In 2024, more than 34.7 million people across the region required urgent food assistance. The report highlights vulnerabilities affecting the four key dimensions of food security, namely availability, access, utilization, and stability of food systems.
The document also notes that dependence on food imports, recurring climate shocks, post-harvest losses, inadequate irrigation infrastructure, and occasional trade restrictions continue to undermine the resilience of regional food systems.
While acknowledging the progress made in implementing the ECOWAS Agricultural Policy (ECOWAP), the report underscores the need to strengthen coherence between national policies and regional commitments. It also highlights the strategic role of regional mechanisms such as the Regional Agricultural Information System (ECOAGRIS) and the Regional Food Security Reserve in enhancing the resilience of communities across the region.
The 2025–2027 Regional Economic Outlook reiterates that regional integration remains a critical driver for accelerating economic transformation and strengthening food security in West Africa. The report points to the opportunities offered by the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), the development of regional agri-food value chains, industrialization, and improved transport and trade infrastructure.
To support sustainable and inclusive growth, the Commission recommends that Member States strengthen domestic resource mobilization, improve public financial management, accelerate investments in agricultural transformation, promote mechanization and irrigation, reinforce early warning and nutrition systems, and reduce barriers to intra-regional trade.
The ECOWAS Commission reaffirms its commitment to supporting Member States in implementing policies that promote macroeconomic stability, food security, structural economic transformation, and deeper regional integration, in line with the ECOWAS Vision 2050.
** Access the full 2025–2027 Regional Economic Outlook Report at the following link: Regional Economic Outlook 2025–2027
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
