Power W.A.: West Africa's businesses plan power for factories

Lagos — West Africa cannot industrialise without reliable electricity. The ECOWAS Business Council (EBC), chaired by Aliko Dangote, has unveiled a private-sector plan to tackle that, ECOWAS said.

Power W.A.

"Power W.A." (Power West Africa) for Industrialisation aims to:

• build industrial power corridors to close electricity gaps that hold back business;
• carry out a regional study of electricity demand and supply;
• raise money from multilateral lenders, with ECOWAS and national governments providing policy guarantees. Afreximbank, the Africa Finance Corporation and the IFC are named as potential financiers.

The framework was finalised at a meeting on 2 October at Dangote Industries' headquarters in Ikoyi, Lagos, between ECOWAS Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture Dehpue Yenpea Zuo and Dangote Group chief economist Professor Hassan Mahmud.

Next steps

• The Business Council holds its inaugural meeting in late October or early November.
• Approval will be sought at the ECOWAS Council of Ministers in December.
• The council has one representative from each member state plus two more from Nigeria.

ECOWAS's other priorities include implementing its Trade Liberalisation Scheme, preparing the planned ECO single currency for 2027 and regional food security. The plan puts West African businesses themselves at the centre of solving the region's power problem.

Source: ECOWAS Commission, 20 October 2026.