History of Africa the country's first multiracial presidential election. Following World War II, nationalist movements arose across West Africa, most notably in Ghana under Kwame Nkrumah. In 1957, Ghana became the first sub-Saharan colony to achieve its independence, followed the next year by France's colonies; by 1974, West Africa's nations were entirely autonomous. Since independence, many West African nations have been plagued by corruption and instability, with notable civil wars in Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Liberia, and Ivory Coast, and a succession of military coups in Ghana and Burkina Faso. Many states have failed to develop their economies despite enviable natural resources, and political
International Contact Group on Liberia a novel approach to the problem of systemic political corruption. The ICGL now functions under a broader, regional institution called the International Contact Group on the Mano River Basin. International Contact Group on Liberia The International Contact Group on Liberia (ICGL) is composed of members from the United Nations, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), African Union, World Bank, United States, Ghana, Nigeria, United Kingdom, Germany, Spain and Sweden. The ICGL was formed from a need for an international and regional response to the Second Liberian Civil War. The ICGL was cited by the Accra Comprehensive Peace Accord