“The plethora of checkpoints dotted along the major transit points across the sub-region adds excessive costs to merchants especially since these checkpoints have become hubs of corruption. The ECA has reported that there was a total of 69 checkpoints on the route between Lagos (Nigeria) and Abidjan (Ivory Coast), a distance of only 992km; 34 checkpoints between Lome (Togo) and Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso), a 989km route; 20 between Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) and Abidjan (Ivory Coast), a distance of 529km.

Nigeria experiences a resource curse perhaps worse than any other nation. Oil exploration has enriched corrupt leaders and done deep and sustained harm to local communities for decades:

FORO writes, "Two decades after a wave of democratization swept Latin America, public trust in democratic institutions continues to be low. Not coincidentally, perceptions of corruption are high while high-profile corruption scandals constantly occupy headlines. In 2010, the highest echelons of government in several countries are being affected by corruption scandals and are condemned by a sizeable sector of public opinion." Numerous scandals have swept through the region, affecting Argentina, Venezuela, Peru, Paraguay, and Brazil.

"In India, Shaffi Mather, a social entrepreneur and founder of three successful social enterprises, has decided to embark on a new mission: to combat India's corruption problem. He plans to launch a for-profit, fee-based Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) service to stop bribes and prevent corruption. More sustainable models like these will hopefully emerge in the short-run and will help to fill the institutional gap left by the authorities."

Okon Akiba provides an insightful editorial summarizing the original intentions behind 31-year-old migration liberalization programs under the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS):