Disability Inclusion in ECOWAS’s Peace, Security and Prosperity Agenda

This research paper examines the systemic gaps in disability inclusion within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) frameworks for peace, security, and development. It argues that while a Regional Action Plan exists, it is underfunded and isolated from core strategic pillars, leaving persons with disabilities (PWDs) vulnerable during crises and excluded from regional governance.

• ECOWAS lacks a harmonised database or reporting mechanism for disability, which prevents the design of inclusive policies and the equitable distribution of resources. While countries like Ghana, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone use the Washington Group Short Set for data collection, these efforts remain fragmented and inconsistent across the region.
• Persons with disabilities face significant barriers to free movement within the region due to discrimination by border officials and the use of biometric identification systems that are not accessible to individuals with certain impairments.
• Core ECOWAS security and peacebuilding instruments, including the 1999 Protocol Relating to the Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management, Resolution, Peacekeeping, and Security and the ECOWAS Conflict Prevention Framework (ECPF), fail to sufficiently consider PWDs, leading to their exclusion from emergency planning and service delivery during crises such as the Ebola epidemic and COVID-19 pandemic.
• The ECOWAS Regional Action Plan on Disability Inclusion (2022-2030) is disconnected from the five pillars of ECOWAS Vision 2050 and relies heavily on external donor funding, which threatens the sustainability and regional ownership of the initiative.
• The ECOWAS Department of Human Development and Social Affairs lacks the necessary funding, legitimacy, and institutional power to effectively coordinate disability policy, as disability is still largely treated as a welfare issue rather than a matter of human rights and governance.
• Humanitarian interventions in the Central Sahel have excluded PWDs through inaccessible infrastructure (such as shelters and distribution points) and flawed assessment methodologies that lack disability-specific questions or alternative communication formats like sign language.

APA

Zandam, H. (2025). Disability Inclusion in ECOWAS’s Peace, Security and Prosperity Agenda. Africa Policy Research Institute. https://afripoli.org/disability-inclusion-in-ecowass-peace-security-and-prosperity-agenda

Chicago

Zandam, Hussain. Disability Inclusion in ECOWAS’s Peace, Security and Prosperity Agenda. Africa Policy Research Institute, 2025. https://afripoli.org/disability-inclusion-in-ecowass-peace-security-and-prosperity-agenda.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Zandam |first1=Hussain |title=Disability Inclusion in ECOWAS’s Peace, Security and Prosperity Agenda |publisher=Africa Policy Research Institute |date=14 November 2025 |url=https://afripoli.org/disability-inclusion-in-ecowass-peace-security-and-prosperity-agenda |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{zandam2025disability, author = {Zandam, Hussain}, title = {{Disability Inclusion in ECOWAS’s Peace, Security and Prosperity Agenda}}, institution = {Africa Policy Research Institute}, year = {2025}, month = nov, url = {https://afripoli.org/disability-inclusion-in-ecowass-peace-security-and-prosperity-agenda}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }