ECOWAS BUILDS THE CAPACITIES OF WOMEN AND CROSS-BORDER TRADE STAKEHOLDERS TO BETTER FACILITATE TRADE IN LOMÉ

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission, through the ECOWAS Center for Gender Development (CCDG), held an event on Monday, June 22, 2026, in Lomé, the official opening of a week-long capacity-building workshop for small-scale cross-border trade actors in the West African region. Organized in partnership with the Government of the Togolese Republic and several technical and financial partners, this regional meeting is part of the Regional Fortnight on Small-Scale Cross-Border Trade by Women in the ECOWAS region, which began on June 18, 2026, in Lomé.

Over the course of five days, participants will take part in a series of technical sessions, group work, practical training, and multi-stakeholder dialogues focused on the key challenges of small-scale cross-border trade. The first two days will be devoted to presenting the results of a situational analysis of women’s and youth participation in cross-border trade across several member states, to the evaluation of the ECOWAS Gender and Trade Action Plan 2015–2020, and to the validation of the new ECOWAS Gender and Trade Strategy 2026–2030 and its action plan.