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The Resident Representative of the WAEMU Commission in Togo, Mr. Assoukou Raymond Krikpeu and the
Director General of the Regional Consular Chamber of UEMOA, Mrs. Mariétou Coulibaly, led,
this Wednesday, July 31, a press conference, to explain the space integration process
community.
The commemoration of the 25th anniversary, placed under the theme: "25 years of progress towards the integration
region, together to take up the challenge of the free movement of people and goods", is marked by
a series of activities including a conference, hosted on Tuesday at the University of Lomé, a press conference,
held yesterday at the headquarters of the representation of the WAEMU Commission, in Lomé, and a gala dinner, which
will take place on August 1 at the Sarakawa Hotel.
According to the Resident Representative of the WAEMU Commission in Togo, Mr. Assoukou Raymond
Krikpeu, this celebration aims to pay tribute to the founding fathers of this community organization,
who have taken an act of faith, that of uniting the efforts of their respective countries, already linked by a solidarity
monetary. He expressed his pride for the work accomplished during this time by all the authorities of
the Union because, at the institutional level, all the mechanisms provided for by the founding Treaty are in place and
function regularly, as do the organs of the Union, which fully play their roles
respective countries. He was also delighted to see sound economic management by the States of the Union.
Cited as a model of successful integration in Africa, WAEMU has carried out major projects during
its 25 years of existence. “She was able to forge a community space where men and women
share the same rights in terms of freedom of movement, establishment and exercise of their
profession,” Mr. Krikpeu said.
An integrated and harmonized economic union
This freedom of movement has been extended to the movement of goods, people, services,
capital and factors of production. During these 25 years, policies in the sectors
socio-economic factors have been harmonised. The Union has been able to strengthen the exercise of multilateral surveillance by
compliance with the convergence criteria and launched, at the same time, a transparency code for the
public finance management. These criteria have enabled member countries of the Union to manage their
development and their public finances. This has enabled the Union to achieve a growth rate
satisfactory by more than 6%, from the sub-regional point of view. In addition to this commendable performance, the rate
inflation is under control within the institution. It is around 1%. With its Economic Program
(PER), WAEMU has built a road corridor, trained human resources, improved
the business environment and facilitated intra-Community and international trade.
In view of M. Krikpeu, the customs union is effective with the application of a common external tariff and
its management mechanisms. Similarly, the implementation of sectoral policies has made it possible to improve the
achievements in terms of access of the populations of the Union to drinking water, energy services, and
Food Safety. Finally, he welcomed the adoption, in 2013, of the Additional Act establishing the common policy
WAEMU in the area of peace and security.
The Union has also adopted a regional action plan devoted to investment in human resources
health and social. For the member countries, it is a question of improving the business climate by encouraging the sector
to invest, set up a follow-up secretariat for the implementation of plans at country level and
finally, encourage more commitment from Member States in investment related to these sectors.
Huge projects carried out in Togo
UEMOA finances more than twenty projects in Togo, indicated its Resident Representative. According to him,
these actions take place in all socio-economic areas. In the agricultural field, the Union has
built in the five regions of the country, harvest storage warehouses. Small stores have been
also built in cities to store grain. WAEMU has also made adjustments
agro-pastoral projects to make life easier for farmers, and build rural roads.
In the field of transport, UEMOA has built the juxtaposed checkpoint of Cinkassé and is planning
to carry out that of Sanvi-Condji on the Togo-Benin border. She contributed to the construction of
road infrastructure and facilitate trade. At the energy level, the Union has set up energy at
through solar panels to facilitate the supply of water to the village hydraulics. More than
1000 (one thousand) hand-operated boreholes were drilled for the benefit of the Togolese populations. Raymond
Krikpeu also noted capacity building through technical assistance to various ministries, without
forget technical support at the level of higher education, etc.
Contemporary and Emerging Challenges to be Addressed
Despite these undeniable successes that the union is called upon to capitalize on and improve, significant challenges remain
to be taken up for the development and the total integration of the populations. Among these challenges, the
Resident Representative of the WAEMU Commission discussed the issue of security in the face of the rise
of terrorism. Today it is becoming a common problem, which is not limited only to borders
but which is rampant within the Union. The other major challenge to be met lies in the effectiveness of free
movement of people, goods, services and capital within the community space, to
really encourage the emergence of intra-community trade, which is struggling to take off. It should be noted
also the low rate of inter-community trade within the Union, the distortions in terms of
competition and the many controls on the corridors, including illegal deductions, long delays
for the transport of goods, snowshoes and other recurring road problems. Mr. Krikpeua
also mentioned the problems of climatic migrations, poverty, unemployment which challenge the chiefs
of states. For him, the countries have experienced relatively strong growth with moderate inflation. But this
growth remains insufficient to be fully inclusive.
WAEMU has eight member states, namely Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea Bissau,
Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo. It was created on January 10, 1994 in Dakar, with the main objective
focused on the construction in West Africa of a harmonized and integrated economic space within which
complete freedom of movement of persons, capital, goods, services and
factors of production, as well as the effective enjoyment of the right of exercise and establishment for
liberal professions, residence for citizens throughout the Community territory.
Moussouloumi BOUKARI
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