By Kebba AF Touray
ECOWAS parliamentarian, Senator Amara Konneh, Chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee and former Minister of Finance and Development Planning of Liberia, said Africa’s youth unemployment stands at 30.43%. Hon. Konneh said this yesterday, Tuesday, June 17 2025, during a presentation he made at the ongoing delocalized meeting of the ECOWAS Parliament in Liberia.
“Youth unemployment in West Africa stands at 24.95 percent, but overall, youth unemployment in Africa stands at 30.43 percent, and globally at 5.8 percent,” Senator Konneh said.
According to him, this strongly suggests that the region does not provide a sufficiently conducive environment for sustainable investment.
“In recognition of the challenges of attracking FDI to create jobs and promote sustainable development, Member states have adopted the ECOWAS Investment Policy to establish harmonised regional investment climate policies,” Hon. Konneh said.
He outlined that key goals of the ECOWAS Investment Policy includes a strategic framework to attract investment, stimulate growth and create jobs, and adds that it also includes attracting domestic and foriegn investment that will drive economic growth and enhance regional cooperation, to facilitate cross border investments, and reduce legal and regulatory barriers to investment. He said most of the sectors affected are agriculture, manufacturing and industry, services and SMEs, adding that to leverage the ECOWAS Investment Policy, there is a need to strengthen the regional investment climate by expanding investment promotion and facilitation.
“There is also the need to enhance financial infrastructure and access to capital, and the need to strengthen regional investment governance, and to improve human capital and workforce development,” the Senator and WCOWAS parliamentarian told his colleagues.
Investment, he said, is important because it plays a central role in job creation and stimulates economic activity by expanding industries and fostering innovation.
According to the Senator, SMES are significant because they serve as the backbone of economic growth and job creation. He said regulatory fragmentation, infrastructure deficits and limited investor confidence pose as barriers to hinder the full potential of the ECOWAS Investment Policy, and suggests that accelerating the harmonisation of the investment law and aligning member states into a single economic space is essential among the strategies to optimise the policy. He called on all ECOWAS Member States to ensure the full integration of the ECOWAS Common Investment Code into national policies of Member States by 2030, and to commit to fostering a collaborative environment for investments.
