Akpabio and Côte d’Ivoire counterpart back regional unity, promote coastal highway to boost trade and cut Lagos-Abidjan travel time.President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, has led a renewed push for deeper West African integration, urging coordinated regional action as Nigeria and Côte d’Ivoire strengthened bilateral and multilateral ties at the 152nd Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in Istanbul, Turkey.Akpabio, according to a statement by his Media Office on Sunday, made the call during a high-level meeting with the Speaker of the Ivorian National Assembly, Patrick Jérôme Achi, where both leaders stressed the urgency of forging a united regional bloc to withstand growing global fragmentation and economic pressures.Declaring Côte d’Ivoire a historic partner, Akpabio warned that failure to integrate could expose the region to new forms of neocolonialism.He maintained that only a united West Africa could maximise trade, political cooperation, and cultural exchange.
The two leaders aligned on the need to strengthen the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and prioritise the reintegration of Sahel countries, describing regional cohesion as critical to economic survival and political stability.
At the centre of their discussions was the Abidjan–Accra–Lagos Coastal Highway, a flagship infrastructure project expected to transform mobility and trade across the subregion.