ECOWAS TECHNICAL MEETING ON THE ESTABLISHMENT OF WASRA/ARMVMAO AS THE REGIONAL CAPITAL MARKET REGULATORY AUTHORITY

The ECOWAS Commission recently convened a meeting of the Technical Committee of the West African Securities Regulators Association (WASRA/ARMVMAO) in Lomé, Togo, from 17 to 19 February 2026, in line with the recommendations of the Capital Issues Committee (Member States’ Capital Market Experts) meeting held in Abuja, Nigeria, from 2 to 3 October 2025.

Representing the Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture, Dr. Kalilou Sylla, the Ag. Director of Private Sector, Mr. Peter Oluonye, explained that the purpose of the meeting was to receive and consolidate Member States’ final comments on the establishment of WASRA/ARMVMAO as the Regional Capital Market Regulatory Authority, as envisaged under Article 53(3)(d) of the Revised ECOWAS Treaty.

The meeting was followed by a virtual session of the Capital Issues Committee on 19 February 2026, during which the updated version of the WASRA/ARMVMAO Charter was presented. The outcome of these engagements is expected to pave the way for the submission of the WASRA Charter to the ECOWAS Convergence Council for consideration and its subsequent recommendation to the Council of Ministers for adoption and the institutionalisation of WASRA/ARMVMAO as the regulatory mechanism for the ECOWAS Capital Market Integration Programme.