Alex Boateng

The Ecowas Convention on Small Arms and Light Weapons: the Management of Small Arms Proliferation in Ghana Alex Boateng

The unguided circulation of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) has not been the burden of Ghana alone but the entire Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in general. This work therefore examines critically the management of Small Arms and Light Weapons particularly, the locally manufactured ones in Ghana within the framework of the 2006 ECOWAS Convention on Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW), their Ammunition and Other Related Materials. And the role the management of SALW in Ghana plays in promoting peace and security in the entire West Africa sub-region. Theoretically, the work is situated within the framework of regime theory as developed by Krasner, Nye, Hass, Keohene and other seasoned political thinkers. The thesis also provides some of the main sources of SALW in the entire West Africa sub-region. The work then delves into ECOWAS SALW management mechanisms since the end of the Cold War especially the ECOWAS Moratorium on SALW and the ECOWAS Convention on SALW. The work further pays attention to the Ghana National Commission on Small Arms (GNCSA) and small arms management in Ghana.