Guinea faced enormous political uncertainties associated with a contested transition of political power and the resultant impact on governance reforms, financial performance, private investments, and spending on social programmes. Attempts to reconcile the nation after the overthrow of President Alpha Condé and the effort to set aside ecowas sanctions took a prominent role in local politics. The year witnessed cabinet reshuffles, a drop in the Freedom House rankings, and stagnation in the Corruption Perceptions Index. The economy recorded 4.7% growth while inflation stood at 12.1%, a slight decline compared with 2021. The fiscal deficit improved by 1.8%, while tax revenues remained low. Human rights were under attack, with widespread arbitrary arrests and detentions, mistreatment of detainees, and denial of fair trial.
West Africa faced severe challenges and demonstrated remarkable resilience at the same time during the year under review. The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Russian–Ukrainian war, and instability emanating from the activities of jihadist groups in the Sahel region continued to undermine collective and individual efforts to secure a living. The year under review also witnessed a number of elections in the sub-region and the stagnation of corruption perceptions. Fights against corruption, drug trafficking, human rights violations, and continuous violence, conflict, and disasters used up state resources and capacity which could otherwise have been used to promote socioeconomic development. However, the economies of member states in the sub-region also showed a level of flexibility, recovery, and growth, at least in some instances. Most of these achievements and set-backs were underpinned by domestic and international political factors worthy of attention.