By Benjamin Nii Nai Anyetei
More than 300 civil society actors, activists, policy experts, and youth leaders from over 10 West African countries are in Accra for the 3rd West Africa Civil Society Week (WACSW) 2025, a major regional platform aimed at redefining civic engagement and strengthening democratic resilience.
Hosted by the West Africa Civil Society Institute (WACSI), the week-long gathering features high-level panel discussions, workshops, strategy sessions, and peer-learning exchanges focused on repositioning civil society amid shrinking funding, rising insecurity, and political uncertainty across the sub-region.
WACSI Executive Director, Dr. Nana Afadzinu, opened the conference with a call for renewed civic energy grounded in innovation, solidarity, and grassroots mobilisation. She noted that despite funding cuts and political pressures, citizens across West Africa continue to demonstrate strong democratic activism through movements such as the May 2025 pro-democracy demonstrations in Bamako, the #EndBadGovernance protests in Nigeria, anti-galamsey campaigns, Ghana’s #FixTheCountry movement, and Senegal’s Y’en a Marre, which harnesses arts and culture for social change.
Speakers stressed that civil society must expand beyond the traditional NGO model to embrace a diverse ecosystem of actors, including professional associations, student unions, faith-based organisations, labour groups, community networks, cooperatives, and private sector partners. This broader coalition, they argued, is essential for sustaining development gains, ensuring accountability, and strengthening citizen participation.
Nigeria Board Chair of WACSI, Oladayo Olaide, described progress in the region as “mixed,” acknowledging improvements in legal frameworks and growing youth involvement in governance processes. However, he warned that implementation of these reforms remains slow and raised concerns over severe cuts to international assistance over the last 11 months — a development he said threatens the survival of many civic organisations.
Participants also examined the implications of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger’s withdrawal from ECOWAS, noting that the exit has disrupted regional integration efforts, trade routes, and cross-border security cooperation. These shifts, they said, affect livelihoods, weaken conflict-prevention systems, and deepen the vulnerabilities of border communities.
WACSI’s Head of Policy Influencing and Advocacy, Omolara Balogun, emphasised that the region’s current challenges, from insecurity and economic instability to donor withdrawal, require deeper cross-border collaboration. She insisted that no single organisation or government can address these issues alone and urged civic actors to build stronger alliances, leverage digital tools, and develop locally grounded financing models.
Panelists throughout the week highlighted the need for youth leadership, digital innovation, cultural mobilisation, private sector involvement, and robust accountability structures to rebuild trust and drive democratic renewal.
Despite funding pressures and operational constraints, organisers said the determination of citizens across the region demonstrates that civic courage, creativity, and collaboration remain essential pillars for a resilient democratic future in West Africa.
