In 2005, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) adopted the Economic Community of West Africa Agricultural Policy (ECOWAP). The ECOWAP defines the principles and objectives related to the agricultural sector, the orientation of agricultural development, and the axes of intervention through which the sub-region exploits its potential to assure sustainable food security in the Member States; decent remuneration for agricultural workers; and expansion of trade on a sustainable basis as much within the region as with the rest of the world. The three axes of this policy are: a) Increasing the productivity and competitiveness of West African agriculture; b) Implementing a trade regime within West Africa; and c) Adapting the trade regime vis-à-vis countries outside the region.