oa Focus on Arms in Africa - West Africa : heralding the ECOWAS convention?

Abstract

For West Africa, 2005 is a yearfull of expectations, not theleast because it marks thepossibility of transforming theECOWAS Moratorium into alegally binding instrument. Areview or a total transformationof the Moratorium that willmake it more compatible withthe UNPoA requirements istherefore unavoidable. This wasfurther reiterated in March 2004during a conference held inAbuja by the ECOWASSecretariat. The conferencereassessed the effectiveness ofthe Moratorium in light of thecurrent global demand andchallenges in trade in smallarms and light weapons. Theconference recommended atotal transformation of theMoratorium into a convention.