In coastal West Africa, the reversal of democratic norms and a growing susceptibility to violent extremism highlight the challenges facing the subregion’s stability and economic development. As a major source of two-way trade with the United States, the heavily populated subregion is situated near critical Gulf of Guinea shipping lines — which have attracted the attention of both U.S. allies and adversaries and been the subject of piracy, oil bunkering and illegal fishing.
However, there are opportunities for the United States and its African partners to get ahead of these growing threats. The USIP Senior Study Group on Coastal West Africa is working to better pinpoint the risks for violent conflict in each country and inform U.S policy towards the subregion.
Between February and August 2022, the senior study group had a series of six discussions that consider the political and socioeconomic vulnerabilities reshaping dynamics in the subregion. The findings of these discussions have been compiled and disseminated as a final report to inform the approach of U.S. and international partners in strengthening conflict prevention and addressing the factors that undermine democracy and stability in the subregion.
Final Report
Senior Study Group Members
Dr. Pauline Baker
President Emeritus, Fund for Peace; Senior Advisor on Governance, Creative Associates International
Ambassador Johnnie Carson
Senior Advisor, United States Institute of Peace; Former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs
Dr. Raymond Gilpin
Chief Economist and Head of Strategy, Africa Bureau, U.N. Development Programme; Former Dean of Academic Affairs, Africa Center for Strategic Studies
Ambassador Robert Jackson
Former U.S. Ambassador to Ghana and Cameroon
Representative James Kolbe
Former U.S. Congressman (AZ-8); Senior Transatlantic Fellow, German Marshall Fund of the United States
Ambassador Deborah Malac
Former U.S. Ambassador to Uganda and Liberia
Minister Aïchatou Mindaoudou
Former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Niger; Former U.N. Special Representative of the Secretary General for Côte d'Ivoire
Minister W. Gyude Moore
Senior Policy Fellow at the Center for Global Development; Former Minister of Public Works, Republic of Liberia
Ambassador Tibor Nagy
Former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs; Former U.S. Ambassador to Guinea
and Ethiopia
Dr. Leila Ndiaye
President and CEO, Initiative for Global Development; Former Senior Director of Policy for African Affairs, U.S. Chamber of Commerce; Former Special Advisor to the Head of State, Republic of Côte d’Ivoire
Serge Thiémélé
Founder and Managing Partner, First Capital; Former President, U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Côte d’Ivoire
