A communiqué after a three-day 73rd Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Council of Ministers, which ended in Abuja at the weekend, said the document would replace the Travel Certificate currently in use.
"The new Biometric Identity Card is to circulate alongside the National Identity Card in each member state for a period of time until the institutionalisation of the new document within a specified time frame," the organization said.
The ministers, after considering the report of regional heads of immigration services on the use of the ECOWAS national biometric identity card, endorsed the new document for the approval of the Authority of Heads of State and Government scheduled to meet in the Nigerian capital from December 14 to 15, 2014.
Council also considered the 2014 Annual Report of the ECOWAS Commission's president, Kadré Désiré Ouédraogo, which provided positive growth forecasts with economic activity put at 5.3 percent in 2014 compared to 4.8 percent in 2013.
"The ECOWAS region continues to be Africa's most dynamic regional economic community, with expected growth rate of 6.3 percent in 2014," Ouédraogo said, with Côte d'Ivoire expected to record the highest growth rate of 9.1 percent in the region.
On the proposed Customs
Union, the ECOWAS chief informed the council that activities had been completed for the implementation of the ECOWAS Common External Tariff (CET) in all member states from January 1, 2015.
---
Autor(en)/Author(s): Stella Omona
Quelle/Source: AllAfrica, 14.12.2014
Bitte besuchen Sie/Please visit:
