The ECOWAS Protocol on Free Movement and Implications for Border Security Management of the Nigeria-Republic of Benin Borders

ECOWAS Protocol on Free Movement and Implications for Border Security Management

Abstract

This paper interrogates the ECOWAS Protocol on Free Movement and the implications for border security management of 
the Nigeria-Republic of Benin borders. The ECOWAS Protocol on Free Movement of Persons was enacted in 1979 to ensure 
the free flow of persons, goods and services deemed crucial to attaining economic integration. Despite the benefits of the 
Protocol including promotion of free trade and commerce as well as easy exchange of human resources across the border, 
severe challenges still persist such as the concomitant increase in Transnational Organized Crimes (TOCs) that are a signature 
of African borders. Human trafficking is a particularly notorious crime that this article pays attention to due to the emphasis 
by the ECOWAS Common Approach to Migration of 2008. Porosity of the borders and inefficient border facilities are also 
obstacles. The ECOWAS Protocol though well intentioned has further aggravated the problems faced by Nigeria and the 
Republic of Benin as regards borders in the sub-region. Unofficial routes have sprung up thereby compounding the issue of policing these borders. It is  imperative that the governments of Nigeria, the Republic of Benin and the ECOWAS authorities begin to reconsider the effects  of the protocol in the light of the current realities. This paper makes the case for a more proactive implementation of the 
ECOWAS protocol by installation and maintenance of sound border facilities, promotion of interagency cooperation across 
border agencies of both countries and appropriate funding for these border agencies.