ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the much-ignored and unglamorous subject of the institutional infrastructure for regional integration in West Africa. It assesses existing institutional arrangements for achieving the cooperation and integration objectives of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). The contention is that the institutional architecture at the level of member states, the central secretariat, and at the interface between the two is inadequate and inappropriate, particularly in terms of structures, resources, and other capacities. The aims of ECOWAS, as enshrined in its establishing treaty, were essentially economic. Before proceeding to a review of the institutional architecture it is relevant to point out that the empirical material was collected as part of a larger project commissioned by the ECOWAS secretariat on national focal points for ECOWAS and New Economic Partnership for African Development (NEPAD) programmes. The Gambia's approach to ECOWAS has been minimalist; that is, it acts 'just enough' to meet its obligations to the organization.
