Towards a transport policy for the ECOWAS subregion

This paper examines transport policy development in a regional grouping of states whose present transport policies reflect their differing colonial pasts. In addition to locational and physical factors, vested interests in preserving present arrangements, lack of assessment of the repercussions of integration, and lack of political will to surrender to a supra‐national authority decisions which will be binding at the national level are identified as major factors militating against the successful formulation of a common transport policy in West Africa.

It is suggested that, although major changes of policy are often difficult and costly to implement, there is the need to effect institutional changes within the subregion in order to achieve the transport objectives of the ECOWAS treaty.