Free movement under the Mano River Union and ECOWAS

What the Mano River Union is

The Mano River Declaration was signed at Malema on 3 October 1973 ². Its first article set up a customs union between Liberia and Sierra Leone called the Mano River Union ². Six protocols followed at Bo on 3 October 1974 ². The declaration says the Union is open to all states in the West African sub-region ².

The Union says Guinea joined in 1980 and Côte d'Ivoire in 2008 ¹. It lists four areas of work: economic development and regional integration, health and community, peace, security and democratic governance, and institutional development ¹. Its current strategic plan includes border security and management ¹. Its website gives a contact address in Freetown ¹.

Where the right to travel comes from

The visa-free right for West Africans comes from ECOWAS, not from the Mano River Union texts we opened ^2,3. The ECOWAS Protocol relating to Free Movement of Persons, Residence and Establishment was done at Dakar on 29 May 1979 ³. Article 2 gives Community citizens the right to enter, reside and establish in member states ³.

Article 3 says a citizen entering another member state needs a valid travel document and an international health certificate ³. Visits of up to 90 days are free of visa requirements through an official entry point ³. A longer stay needs an extension from the relevant authority ³. Article 4 lets a member state refuse entry to anyone its laws class as an inadmissible immigrant ³.

Sierra Leone announced visa-free entry for ECOWAS citizens with immediate effect in September 2019, as reported by Abdur Rahman Alfa Shaban for Africanews ⁴. The report said African Union citizens from outside ECOWAS would pay US$25 for a visa on arrival ⁴.

Border tensions and the 2026 summit

Reuters, as reported by Umaru Fofana and the Guinea newsroom, said on 24 February that Guinean forces had detained members of a Sierra Leonean joint security team at Kaliyereh ⁶. Guinea said 16 Sierra Leonean soldiers had entered its territory without authorisation ⁶. Sierra Leone said it sought their safe and unconditional release ⁶.

The presidents of Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone met in Conakry under the Mano River Union framework, with talks ending on 16 March 2026, according to The New Dawn ⁵. They agreed to keep the status quo ante on current border positions during talks ⁵. They agreed to strengthen joint border patrols, intelligence sharing and surveillance, and to encourage free movement of people and goods ⁵. They agreed to hold a Mano River Union summit within one month ⁵. We did not find a published record of that summit.

Joint border commissions

Liberia's Ministry of Internal Affairs hosted ministerial talks for the four Mano River Union states from 16 to 19 June 2025, according to an unsigned Liberian Observer report ⁷. The talks aimed to set up joint technical commissions to reaffirm land borders and delimit maritime boundaries ⁷. The report said the commissions would carry out field assessments and recommend demarcation for disputed or undefined areas ⁷. It reported no final decision ⁷.

Complaints at the borders

An ECOWAS Parliament delegation led by Speaker Mustapha Cisse Lo held a fact-finding mission on free movement at Liberia's borders with Sierra Leone and Guinea on 28 and 29 September 2018, as reported by Gerald C. Koinyeneh for FrontPage Africa ⁸. Traders told the delegation that security forces on the Liberia and Guinea border demanded money, the report said ⁸. A Liberian immigration commander said most people crossing lacked the relevant documents ⁸. The report said Sierra Leonean citizens described a cordial relationship between the two countries ⁸.

Border infrastructure projects

ECOWAS invited bids on 16 August 2024 for joint border posts at Jendema and Bo Waterside between Liberia and Sierra Leone, financed by the ECOWAS Commission ¹⁰. The Mano River Union invited bids on 15 May 2026 to rehabilitate the customs border control station at Baidu in Kailahun District ⁹. That work falls under Phase IV of the Mano River Union Road Development and Transport Facilitation Programme, financed by the African Development Fund ⁹. The bid deadline was extended to 26 June 2026 ⁹.