Executive Secretary of the West Africa Telecommunications Regulators Assembly (WATRA), Mr. Aliyu Yusuf Aboki, has reaffirmed the Assembly’s commitment to -promoting a harmonised digital policy and regulatory environment across West Africa, stating that consistent, coordinated regulation is key to unlocking investment, innovation, and growth in the region’s digital economy.
Speaking at the opening of the third meeting of WATRA’s Working Groups in Accra, Ghana, Mr. Aboki emphasised that a harmonised regulatory space would turn West Africa into a coherent, unified digital market attractive to global and regional investors.
“WATRA is not just facilitating dialogue, we are laying the foundation for a seamless regional market where innovation and investment can thrive,” said Mr. Aboki. “This meeting in Accra reflects our collective determination to build regulatory infrastructure that enables inclusion, trust, and scale.”
Hosted by Ghana’s National Communications Authority (NCA), the four-day high-level session brings together telecom regulators, private sector leaders, development partners, and digital policy experts to share knowledge and experiences and develop recommendations that will refine regional frameworks in three key areas: consumer experience, infrastructure development, and cybersecurity.
Why Harmonisation Creates a Larger Market
The ECOWAS region, home to over 400 million people, has immense potential as a single digital market. Yet divergent national regulations have led to fragmented investment environments, increased compliance costs, and inefficiencies in service delivery.
By aligning rules and standards across borders, harmonisation expands the effective size of the market available to telecom operators, fintechs, digital platforms, and infrastructure investors. Instead of dealing with 16 different licensing regimes, spectrum policies, or consumer regulations, companies can scale more efficiently across the region, reducing costs and risks while increasing innovation and competition.
“Regulatory harmonisation transforms fragmented national markets into one larger, more investable region,” Mr. Aboki explained. “It’s the gateway to building regional tech champions, improving affordability for consumers, and fostering resilient digital systems.”
Why the Working Groups Matter
WATRA’s Working Groups, on Consumer Access and Experience, Infrastructure Development, and Cybersecurity, are the Assembly’s strategic engines for technical cooperation and reform. Under Mr. Aboki’s leadership, they are designing regional frameworks that serve as models for national implementation.
- Consumer Access and Experience: Enhancing consumer trust and fair service standards increases uptake of digital services and drives inclusive digital participation.
- Infrastructure Development: Harmonised infrastructure policies, especially around spectrum allocation, satellite communications and sub-sea and terrestrial optical fibre, attract investment in broadband, towers, and regional connectivity.
- Cybersecurity: Establishing regional cyber standards is critical to protecting users, safeguarding cross-border digital trade, and ensuring investor confidence.
“The Working Groups produce actionable, home-grown solutions that regulators can adapt to national contexts,” Mr. Aboki said. “They are where vision meets implementation.”
A Sector of Strategic Importance
West Africa’s telecommunications industry is a cornerstone of the region’s economic development. With over 250 million mobile subscribers, more than 120 million internet users, and nearly 15% of Nigeria’s GDP coming from ICT, the sector plays a transformative role in commerce, education, governance, and job creation.
Yet, the absence of harmonised rules continues to impede regional scale. Mr. Aboki stressed that the creation of a Single Digital Market in West Africa could unlock billions of dollars in annual value, supporting seamless mobile roaming, digital financial inclusion, cross-border e-commerce, and regional cloud infrastructure.
A Vision for Regional Digital Transformation
The Accra meeting will finalise recommendations and technical outputs for validation and adoption at WATRA’s next Conference of Regulators.
These outcomes are expected to serve as shared regional standards, improving regulatory consistency while respecting each country’s unique context.
Edmund Yirenkyi Fianko, Ghana’s acting director-General of the NCA, expressed support for the harmonisation effort, citing Ghana’s leadership in ECOWAS free roaming and regional cybersecurity frameworks.
Aliyu Aboki’s Strategic Leadership
Since taking office, Mr. Aboki has steered WATRA into a new era of proactive, consensus-driven regional leadership.
His efforts are helping to position the Assembly as a continental thought leader in telecom and digital regulation, bridging national priorities with a unified regional vision.
“Regulation should be an accelerator of innovation, not a barrier,” Mr. Aboki concluded. “Through harmonisation, we can build a larger, safer, and more inclusive market that delivers real benefits to citizens, investors, and governments alike.”
