Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the (a) effectiveness, (b) potential and (c) adequacy of relations between the UK and West Africa.

The UK and West Africa have shared interests from security to investment and development to climate resilience. But West Africa is also a diverse region, with the UK valuing its partnership with each West African nation. For example, the Foreign Secretary visited Nigeria in November and agreed a new Strategic Partnership enabling greater UK-Nigerian cooperation on shared priorities. On 7 January, Lord Collins attended Ghanaian President John Mahama's inauguration, strengthening ties with Ghana and other regional leaders. Lord Collins also visited Ghana and Senegal in September focusing on UK support to boost growth, clean energy, food security and women's empowerment. In his speech at the UK/Francophone West and Central Africa Trade Forum on 4 December, Lord Collins highlighted the Government's desire to strengthen UK trade partnerships across the region.