Adopted: 21 December 2001
Ratifications: 1
Entry into force: Upon ratification by at least 9 signatory states
Open to: Any State may accede to this protocol
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The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is a regional organisation of 15 West African nations formed in 1975. There were 16 nations in the group until recently when Mauritania withdrew membership from ECOWAS. The main objective of ECOWAS at its formation was to achieve economic integration and shared development so as to form a unified economic zone in West Africa. Later on, the scope was expanded to include socio-political interactions and mutual development in related spheres. The membership list includes the following countries. Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Côte d'Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo.

The ECOWAS Protocol on the Fight against Corruption of the Economic Community of West African States was adopted with the objective of strengthening effective mechanisms to prevent, suppress and eradicate corruption in each of the States parties through cooperation between the States parties. It was signed on 21 December 2001 and has not yet entered into force.

The Protocol obliges States Parties to adopt the necessary legislative measures to criminalise active and passive bribery in the public and private sectors; illicit enrichment, false accounting, as well as acts of aiding and abetting corrupt practices, and the laundering of the proceeds of corruption; to ensure the protection of victims; and to provide each other with judicial and law enforcement cooperation. The Protocol further calls upon States parties to harmonize their national anti-corruption laws, to adopt effective preventive measures against corruption and to introduce proportionate and dissuasive sanctions.

categories of obligations

The obligations of the parties fall into the following categories:

1. Preventive measures: The ECOWAS Protocol preventive measures in the public and private sectors. These include requirements in the public service of declarations of assets and establishment of codes of conduct. Also included are requirements of access to information, whistleblower protection, procurement standards, transparency in the funding of political parties civil society participation and many other requirements. It is also required to establish, maintain and strengthen independent national anti-corruption authorities.
2. Criminalisation: The Protocol calls for criminalisation of a wide range of offences, including trading in influence and illicit enrichment. Moreover it includes offences relating both to public sector corruption and private sector (private-to-private) corruption. It also calls for the liability of legal persons.
3. International cooperation: The ECOWAS Protocol provides an international cooperation framework which has the potential to improve mutual law enforcement assistance within West Africa and with other parts of Africa. It also provides a framework for the confiscation and seizure of assets.
4. Follow-up Mechanism: The Protocol calls for establishment of a Technical Commission to monitor implementation at both national and sub-regional levels, as well as gathering and disseminating information, organising training programmes and providing assistance to States Parties.

The corruption issue is also addressed on a regional basis, but much less extensively in the ECOWAS Protocol relating to the Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management, Resolution, Peacekeeping and Security adopted on 10 December 1999.