Editing ECOWAS (section)

=== Overall ===
ECOWAS consists of two operating institutions to implement policies: the ECOWAS Commission and the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) – formerly known as the Fund for Cooperation, until it was renamed in 2001.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bidc-ebid.org/en/?page_id=42697 |website=ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development |title=Aboutus – EBID &#124; ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development |access-date=3 February 2022 |archive-date=3 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220203144953/https://www.bidc-ebid.org/en/?page_id=42697 |url-status=live}}</ref>

In addition, ECOWAS includes the following institutions: ECOWAS Commission, Community Court of Justice,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://prod.courtecowas.org/ |title=CCJ Official Website |work=prod.courtecowas.org |access-date=16 October 2019 |archive-date=26 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201126174839/http://prod.courtecowas.org/ |url-status=dead}}</ref> Community Parliament,<ref name="auto">{{cite web |url=https://www.ecowas.int/ |title=Economic Community of West African States(ECOWAS) |work=ecowas.int |access-date=27 July 2023 |archive-date=22 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201222021223/https://www.ecowas.int/ |url-status=live}}</ref> ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID),<ref name="auto"/> West African Health Organisation (WAHO),<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.wahooas.org/web-ooas/ |title=WAHO &#124; West African Health Organization |website=www.wahooas.org |access-date=27 July 2023 |archive-date=1 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101114112/https://www.wahooas.org/web-ooas/ |url-status=live}}</ref> and the Inter-Governmental Action Group against Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing in West Africa (GIABA).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.giaba.org/ |title=Welcome ! |publisher=GIABA |access-date=2019-10-16 |archive-date=7 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201207185437/https://www.giaba.org/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

ECOWAS includes two sub-regional blocks:

* The [[West African Economic and Monetary Union]] (also known by its French-language acronym UEMOA) is an organisation of eight, mainly French-speaking, states within ECOWAS which share a [[customs union]] and [[currency union]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Basic information {{!}} Economic Community of West African States(ECOWAS) |url=https://ecowas.int/about-ecowas/basic-information/ |access-date=2022-02-21 |website=ecowas.int |archive-date=21 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220221052450/https://ecowas.int/about-ecowas/basic-information/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Established in 1994 and intended to counterbalance the dominance of English-speaking economies in the bloc (such as Nigeria and Ghana), members of UEMOA are mostly former territories of [[French West Africa]]. The currency they all use is the [[CFA franc]], which is [[Fixed exchange-rate system|pegged]] to the [[euro]].<ref name=":0" />
* The [[West African Monetary Zone]] (WAMZ), established in 2000, comprises six mainly English-speaking countries within ECOWAS which plan to work towards adopting their own common currency, the [[Eco (currency)|eco]].<ref name=":0" />

ECOWAS operates in three co-official languages—French, English, and Portuguese.<ref name=":0" />