West Africa, the home of landmarks such as Timbuktu and the Niger River, is a cultural hub filled with vast natural, beautiful habitats.
But it also contains many of the continent’s poorest countries, and faces significant barriers to prosperity — not least a series of insurrections which have seen many of its countries labeled part of the “Coup Belt.”
Regional integration is rocky. In January, three West African countries: Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger withdrew their membership from the local body to promote economic integration — the Economic Community of West African States, or ECOWAS. ECOWAS had previously suspended them, and several other nations, following military coups.
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Alecsondra Kieren Si
Alecsondra Si is a Junior Development Analyst at Devex. She analyzes funding data from bilateral and multilateral agencies, foundations, and other public and private donors to produce content for Devex Pro and Pro Funding readers. She has a bachelor’s degree in International Studies - major in European Studies from De La Salle University, Manila, Philippines.
