Trade Integration in a Layered System of International Law

Abstract

Central to the attainment of West Africa's regional integration objectives is the free movement of Community citizens across national boundaries. This was an implicit acknowledgement by the founding fathers of ECOWAS of the fact that when people move from one member state to another, they carry along with them, not just their skills or requisite know-how, but also physical articles of trade. In other words, free movement of persons within the region would necessarily precipitate a like movement of goods and services across the region, thereby enhancing opportunities for market integration and efficiency. Accordingly, efforts were made through legal instrumentation to create an enabling environment which would facilitate the free movement of persons within the region. Notwithstanding, the multilayered system of laws in the region has operated to undermine the application and enforceability of such regional legal instruments at member-state level. Regional integration in West Africa continues to suffer several setbacks largely as a result of member states’ failure to comply with their treaty obligations. This article takes the view that defining a proper relationship between ECOWAS law and the national law of member states is central to the attainment of the region's aspirations of socio-economic and political integration. This would require a system that obliges member states to effectively cede part of their sovereignty to a regional body on such common issues like trade and thus recognise related regional laws as taking precedence over domestic laws as far as such issues are concerned.