{"schema":"https://ver.cy/schemas/card/1.0.0","id":"vr.tr.west-africa","code":"thing-q4412","url":"https://ver.cy/models/thing/q4412/","name":"West Africa","alternateNames":[],"kind":"thing","status":"published","version":"0.1.0-research.1","language":"en","classifiers":{"family":"Thing Registry","category":"Information and virtual systems","entryKind":"thing","plane":"INF","domain":["INF.KNW"],"industry":[],"navPath":"","tags":[],"facets":{}},"whatItIs":"West Africa is a conventionally delimited region of western Africa whose geographic, historical and cultural boundaries vary, with the United Nations statistical grouping called Western Africa providing one explicit country-and-area classification.","purpose":"Enable an AI agent to identify West Africa under an explicit regional convention, assess claims about its changing conditions, and determine when regional comparisons or actions are justified.","scope":{"in":["Geographic and institutional conventions used to delimit West Africa","Relationships among coastal, inland, Sahelian and other subregional settings","Regional patterns of settlement, language, mobility and historical connection","Cross-border environmental, economic and infrastructure relationships","Evidence and conditions governing the use of West Africa as an analytical or operational unit"],"out":["Complete national or local models of countries and settlements located within the region","The whole African continent or the whole Sahel","Internal governance and procedures of ECOWAS or other regional organisations","Exhaustive accounts of individual peoples, languages, religions or historical states","Detailed specifications of individual ecosystems, commodities, infrastructure assets or armed conflicts"],"boundaries":[]},"distinguishingFeatures":["A claim about West Africa must identify a geographic referent or regional convention; a shared label alone does not establish identical coverage.","West Africa and ECOWAS must be distinguished by comparing the selected geographic coverage with the organisation's membership at the relevant date.","West Africa and the Sahel must be distinguished by identifying whether the claim concerns a regional delimitation or an environmental and social zone that crosses regional boundaries.","A West African regional claim must account for variation between coastal and inland settings rather than treating one country's conditions as representative.","A knowledge resource about West Africa is evidence about the region, while the region itself remains the referent of this model."],"structure":{"bundles":[{"id":"regional-identity-and-extent","name":"Regional identity and extent","description":"Establishes which West Africa a reference denotes and how that coverage relates to other regional labels.","layers":[{"id":"delimitation-conventions","name":"Delimitation conventions","description":"Records the authority, purpose and geographic coverage of a chosen definition.","findings":[{"id":"explicit-west-africa-referent","name":"Explicit West Africa referent","description":"Recognition requires a named convention or a documented operational boundary, with unresolved inclusions retained as uncertainty.","questions":[{"text":"Which authority or analytical purpose defines West Africa for this use?","id":"explicit-west-africa-referent-q01","kind":"definition"},{"text":"Which countries, territories, islands or partial areas does that definition include or exclude?","id":"explicit-west-africa-referent-q02","kind":"boundary"}]}]},{"id":"overlapping-regional-labels","name":"Overlapping regional labels","description":"Separates West Africa from institutional groupings and adjacent or intersecting geographic zones.","findings":[{"id":"geography-zone-and-membership","name":"Geography, zone and membership","description":"References to ECOWAS, the Sahel, the Gulf of Guinea or other neighbouring concepts require explicit relationships to the selected West Africa boundary.","questions":[{"text":"Where does the selected West Africa extent overlap with, extend beyond or fall short of the other named region or grouping?","id":"geography-zone-and-membership-q01","kind":"boundary"},{"text":"Which dated geographic or membership source supports that relationship?","id":"geography-zone-and-membership-q02","kind":"provenance"}]}]}]},{"id":"environment-and-seasonal-conditions","name":"Environment and seasonal conditions","description":"Organises environmental differences and connected water systems relevant to interpreting West African conditions.","layers":[{"id":"coastal-inland-and-sahelian-settings","name":"Coastal, inland and Sahelian settings","description":"Locates evidence within source-defined environmental zones and seasonal periods.","findings":[{"id":"environmental-context-of-regional-claims","name":"Environmental context of regional claims","description":"Statements about rainfall, vegetation, heat or livelihoods need spatial and seasonal qualification before regional interpretation.","questions":[{"text":"Which coastal, inland or Sahelian areas and which seasons does the observation actually cover?","id":"environmental-context-of-regional-claims-q01","kind":"boundary"},{"text":"What spatial resolution, observation period and uncertainty support the reported environmental pattern?","id":"environmental-context-of-regional-claims-q02","kind":"measurement"}]}]},{"id":"shared-waters-and-coasts","name":"Shared waters and coasts","description":"Connects river basins and coastal processes to the jurisdictions and populations affected.","findings":[{"id":"water-system-regional-dependencies","name":"Water-system regional dependencies","description":"Analysis of systems such as the Niger and Senegal river basins must distinguish hydrological boundaries from the chosen regional boundary and locate relevant upstream and downstream dependencies.","questions":[{"text":"Which parts of the relevant basin or coastal system lie within the selected West Africa extent, and which dependencies extend beyond it?","id":"water-system-regional-dependencies-q01","kind":"boundary"},{"text":"What evidence and coordination arrangements are needed before recommending an intervention with downstream or coastal effects?","id":"water-system-regional-dependencies-q02","kind":"action"}]}]}]},{"id":"peoples-settlements-and-historical-connections","name":"Peoples, settlements and historical connections","description":"Supports regional interpretation of social diversity, settlement and historical relationships without treating West Africa as one society.","layers":[{"id":"language-and-settlement-patterns","name":"Language and settlement patterns","description":"Distinguishes community language use, administrative language categories and settlement distributions.","findings":[{"id":"social-patterns-beyond-national-labels","name":"Social patterns beyond national labels","description":"An agent should locate language and population evidence at its actual scale and avoid treating national administrative categories as complete descriptions of communities.","questions":[{"text":"Does the evidence describe official language status, reported language use, community identification or another distinct measure?","id":"social-patterns-beyond-national-labels-q01","kind":"definition"},{"text":"Which settlements and cross-border populations are represented or absent in the underlying observations?","id":"social-patterns-beyond-national-labels-q02","kind":"provenance"}]}]},{"id":"historical-geographies-and-mobility","name":"Historical geographies and mobility","description":"Places historical networks and population movement within their own periods and geographic extents.","findings":[{"id":"period-specific-regional-connections","name":"Period-specific regional connections","description":"Historical analysis should distinguish trans-Saharan, Atlantic and intra-regional connections and avoid projecting present-day boundaries onto earlier periods.","questions":[{"text":"Which period and documented network make West Africa a useful frame for this historical claim?","id":"period-specific-regional-connections-q01","kind":"definition"},{"text":"Which present-day boundaries or labels would distort the historical extent of the people, polity or route being described?","id":"period-specific-regional-connections-q02","kind":"boundary"}]}]}]},{"id":"regional-flows-and-institutions","name":"Regional flows and institutions","description":"Relates economic and mobility connections to the organisations and jurisdictions able to influence them.","layers":[{"id":"coastal-gateways-and-inland-corridors","name":"Coastal gateways and inland corridors","description":"Examines links among ports, border crossings, inland markets and connected infrastructure.","findings":[{"id":"corridor-specific-dependence","name":"Corridor-specific dependence","description":"Regional connectivity should be assessed through documented routes and flows, including the dates and conditions under which those routes function.","questions":[{"text":"Which coastal gateways and inland corridors serve the places under assessment, according to observed flows?","id":"corridor-specific-dependence-q01","kind":"measurement"},{"text":"Which border, transport or infrastructure dependencies must be checked before selecting a route or coordinating a regional operation?","id":"corridor-specific-dependence-q02","kind":"action"}]}]},{"id":"dated-institutional-authority","name":"Dated institutional authority","description":"Records the temporal and functional scope of regional agreements and organisations.","findings":[{"id":"membership-is-not-regional-coverage","name":"Membership and regional coverage","description":"An agent must establish an institution's applicable membership, mandate and implementation arrangements for the relevant date before attributing region-wide authority to it.","questions":[{"text":"Which dated official records establish the relevant ECOWAS or other institutional membership and applicable agreement?","id":"membership-is-not-regional-coverage-q01","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which institution and national authorities can authorise or implement the proposed action in each affected jurisdiction?","id":"membership-is-not-regional-coverage-q02","kind":"action"}]}]}]},{"id":"regional-evidence-and-judgement","name":"Regional evidence and judgement","description":"Determines when observations can support conclusions about West Africa and when conclusions must remain local or provisional.","layers":[{"id":"comparable-regional-measures","name":"Comparable regional measures","description":"Checks the construction and interpretation of indicators aggregated across the selected region.","findings":[{"id":"consistent-west-africa-denominators","name":"Consistent West Africa denominators","description":"Regional totals, rates and trends require compatible definitions, explicit inclusion lists and a treatment of missing observations.","questions":[{"text":"Do the compared values use the same West Africa extent, reference period, denominator and measurement definition?","id":"consistent-west-africa-denominators-q01","kind":"measurement"},{"text":"Which included areas lack observations, and how does their absence limit the regional estimate?","id":"consistent-west-africa-denominators-q02","kind":"provenance"}]}]},{"id":"spatially-qualified-decisions","name":"Spatially qualified decisions","description":"Links assessments of changing conditions to the actual locations and decision contexts supported by evidence.","findings":[{"id":"limits-of-region-wide-action","name":"Limits of region-wide action","description":"A finding about a particular Sahelian area, coastal city or transport corridor should support a wider West African decision only when the wider applicability is established.","questions":[{"text":"What evidence supports extending this local or subregional finding to the other parts of West Africa affected by the decision?","id":"limits-of-region-wide-action-q01","kind":"boundary"},{"text":"Should the proposed action apply region-wide, be limited to identified places or await additional evidence?","id":"limits-of-region-wide-action-q02","kind":"action"}]}]}]},{"id":"evidence-and-external-alignment","name":"Evidence and external alignment","description":"What the world already says about this thing, gathered so the model can be checked against it.","layers":[{"id":"reported-evidence","name":"Reported evidence","description":"Findings from the breadth pass, kept separate from the structural claims.","findings":[{"id":"evidence-confidence-notes","name":"Check these first","description":"Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.","questions":[{"text":"Which of these check these first hold for the sense of West Africa this model covers, and on what evidence?","id":"evidence-confidence-notes-q01","kind":"provenance"}]},{"id":"evidence-identifiers","name":"Identifiers and schemes","description":"Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.","questions":[{"text":"Which of these identifiers and schemes hold for the sense of West Africa this model covers, and on what evidence?","id":"evidence-identifiers-q01","kind":"provenance"}]},{"id":"evidence-standards-and-regulation","name":"Standards and regulation","description":"Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.","questions":[{"text":"Which of these standards and regulation hold for the sense of West Africa this model covers, and on what evidence?","id":"evidence-standards-and-regulation-q01","kind":"provenance"}]},{"id":"evidence-real-world-use","name":"Real-world use","description":"Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.","questions":[{"text":"Which of these real-world use hold for the sense of West Africa this model covers, and on what evidence?","id":"evidence-real-world-use-q01","kind":"provenance"}]},{"id":"evidence-failure-modes-and-hazards","name":"Failure modes and hazards","description":"Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.","questions":[{"text":"Which of these failure modes and hazards hold for the sense of West Africa this model covers, and on what evidence?","id":"evidence-failure-modes-and-hazards-q01","kind":"provenance"}]},{"id":"evidence-regional-variation","name":"Regional variation","description":"Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.","questions":[{"text":"Which of these regional variation hold for the sense of West Africa this model covers, and on what evidence?","id":"evidence-regional-variation-q01","kind":"provenance"}]},{"id":"evidence-neighbours","name":"Neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart","description":"Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.","questions":[{"text":"Which of these neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart hold for the sense of West Africa this model covers, and on what evidence?","id":"evidence-neighbours-q01","kind":"provenance"}]}]}]}]},"agentConduct":{"may":["Describe West Africa, stating which definition of the region is used.","Report data for the region from named statistical sources."],"mustNot":["Treat West Africa as one uniform culture or country.","Use outdated colonial names or borders as current.","Repeat stereotypes about poverty, conflict or disease as the whole story.","Present disputed borders or conflicts as settled."],"requiresHuman":["Publishing regional rankings or risk ratings that affect investment or travel."]},"ethics":{"considerations":["Regional stereotypes harm people's dignity and economic prospects.","The region's history includes the slave trade and colonialism, which must be told accurately."],"affectedParties":["People of West Africa","Diaspora communities","Researchers"]},"owners":{"steward":"Nobody: a region; each state governs its own territory.","roles":[],"masterSystems":[]},"relations":[{"target":"Q817121","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"}],"interaction":{"identity":{"applicability":"required","items":["Vercy registry: vr.tr.west-africa","Wikidata: Q4412 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4412)"]},"properties":{"applicability":"not-applicable","items":["Regional delimitation convention: Named statistical, geographic, historical or operational convention, with version or date","Included geographic units: Countries, territories or subnational areas linked to the selected convention; inclusion may be partial or disputed","Environmental and livelihood setting: Source-defined coastal, forest, savanna, Sahelian, riverine or other relevant settings; multiple assignments permitted","Population distribution: Persons, persons per square kilometre or population shares, with year and geographic coverage","Cross-border connectivity: Documented migration routes, trade corridors, transport links, shared waters and energy connections","Institutional coverage: Organisation or agreement linked to participating jurisdictions, effective dates and applicable functions","Regional evidence coverage: Comparable, partially comparable, incompatible or unknown, assessed for a specified claim and period"]},"recognition":{"applicability":"not-applicable","items":[]},"capabilities":{"applicability":"required","items":["Resolve a reference to West Africa into a named delimitation and identify ambiguous inclusions.","Compare regional indicators after aligning geographic coverage, dates and measurement definitions.","Trace cross-border dependencies among coastal gateways, inland populations, shared waters and regional networks.","Identify which regional institutions and national authorities are relevant to a proposed action.","Separate region-wide evidence from findings that apply only to particular countries, corridors or environmental zones.","Flag unsupported generalisations and formulate research questions for missing parts of the region."]},"hazards":{"applicability":"required","items":["Stereotyping of a diverse region.","Inconsistent definitions skewing statistics."]},"interfaces":{"applicability":"required","items":["The M49 Standard Country or Area Codes for Statistical Use, issued by the United Nations Statistics Division, defines Western Africa as a statistical subregion."]},"context":{"applicability":"required","items":["West Africa is used as a regional frame in geography, history, cultural studies and discussions of environmental conditions.","Statistical comparisons and regional planning require an explicit country-and-area grouping because geographic and institutional definitions differ.","The United Nations grouping called Western Africa provides one documented convention for organizing regional data."]}},"sources":[{"title":"Wikidata item Q4412: West Africa","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4412","note":"identity and sense of the item"},{"title":"Wikipedia: West Africa","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Africa","note":"general description of the item"}],"openQuestions":["Which delimitation should be the registry's default for West Africa, and how should alternative treatments of islands and territories be represented?","Does INF / INF.KNW intentionally classify the regional knowledge concept, or does the registry need an explicit relationship to a geographic-place model?","Does an existing world model already cover West Africa or an equivalent regional concept, requiring reuse rather than a separate publication?","Which dated authoritative sources establish institutional coverage, and what update process will keep membership and agreement claims current?","Which sources provide sufficiently comparable environmental, population, language and connectivity evidence across the selected region, and where must conclusions remain unresolved?"],"resources":{"spec":"/models/things/publications/thing-q4412/spec.json"},"provenance":{"origin":"thing registry research (pass 2)","builtFrom":["models/things/publications/thing-q4412/spec.json"],"providers":["Codex"],"researchStatus":"unreviewed","generatedAt":"2026-09-07T11:05:35Z","builder":"tools/build_cards.py@1.0.0"},"completeness":{"sections":{"classifiers":"filled","whatItIs":"filled","purpose":"filled","distinguishingFeatures":"filled","structure":"filled","agentConduct":"filled","ethics":"filled","owners":"filled","relations":"filled","interaction.identity":"filled","interaction.properties":"not-applicable","interaction.recognition":"not-applicable","interaction.capabilities":"filled","interaction.hazards":"filled","interaction.interfaces":"filled","interaction.context":"filled","sources":"filled"},"notes":{"_gate":"Published through the thing publication gate 1.0 on 2026-10-07T10:10:31+00:00: completeness 1.00; sense: Wikidata description; 2 live sources; review by codex: pass","interaction.properties":"Plane INF: no invented physical properties.","interaction.recognition":"This conventionally delimited region has no unique visible boundary or appearance that establishes its membership."},"score":1.0}}