In 1975, the heads of states from 16 West African Countries signed the Treaty of Lagos
forming ECOWAS which stands for Economic Community of West African States.
The community’s mission was to promote economic integration across the region.
In 2000, one of the founding member states, Mauritania, decided to withdraw from the union
leaving 15 states which include Benin, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Niger, Nigeria,
Togo.
Sierra Leone, Senegal, Mali, Liberia, Guinea Bissau, Guinea, Gambia, and Cape Verde.
In a highly unlikely and complex situation, what if the remaining 15 ECOWAS countries
united and became one combined West African State?
The new United West African State would cover an area of just over 5 million (5,114,162)
square kilometers, which is about 17% of Africa.
It would be the largest country by area in Africa and the 7th largest in the World just
ahead of India and behind Australia.
Abuja city is the current headquarters for ECOWAS and would likely remain as the capital
city of the United West African State.
The new country would have a population of 401,201, 062 accounting for 31% of Africa’s
population and 5.14% of the world’s population.
Nigeria alone would contribute up to 53% of the United West African State total population
which would be the third most populous nation in the world behind China and India and just
above the United States.
Most of the new State’s population would be living around the Lagos metropolitan area.
However, the erasing of the borders would result in free movement and trade between
all the major cities which would likely redistribute the population density.
The official languages would be English which is spoken by 5 countries, French, spoken by
8 countries, and Portuguese which is spoken by 2 countries.
In addition, hundreds of other African languages would be spoken in the State.
For example, in Nigeria alone, over 500 languages are spoken.
The State would also be one of the most ethnically diverse countries with hundreds of ethnic
groups coming together.
Again, Nigeria alone has over 250 ethnic groups that have their own unique customs.
In regards to religion, 55% of the population would be practicing Islam making it the dominant
religion in the United West African State.
The state would also have a sizable 35% of the population practicing Christianity and
a 10% population holding other beliefs.
Economically, the United West African State would have a nominal GDP of $767.56 ($767,564,000,000)
billion.
Nigeria alone would account for 67% of this GDP.
Since Nigeria is the largest economy in Africa, the United West African State would automatically
keep the top spot.
In addition, it would be the 21st largest economy in the world ahead of Taiwan, Poland,
and Sweden, and trailing Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Switzerland.
However, the United West African State GDP per Capita would only be $1913 per person
making the average West African living conditions similar to those of the average Yemeni Citizen.
The new country’s average citizen would also have a lower standard of living in comparison
to the current African countries as it would only rank 42nd in Africa.
In regards to natural resources, Nigeria would once again be a major contributor to the new
United West African State instantly making it one of the top oil-producing countries
in the world.
However, even more impressive, the new country would be the top Cocoa bean producer in the
world accounting for 65% of the global cocoa production.
In fact, 50% of the world’s cocoa currently comes from the Ivory Coast and Ghana.
Finally, uniting multiple countries into one would present multiple challenges.
Some of the issues that would pose challenges include the vast ethnic diversity, political
differences, and low standard of living.
So, what other challenges do you think the new United West African State would encounter.
Leave your answer in the comments and thank you for watching.