ECOWAS initiates plan to mitigate consequences of Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger withdrawal
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission says it has initiated a contingency plan to mitigate unforeseen consequences of the withdrawal of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger. The Commissioner, Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Abdel-Fatau Musah, said this at the meeting of ECOWAS Committee of the Chiefs of Defence Staff (CDS) on Tuesday […]
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission says it has initiated a contingency plan to mitigate unforeseen consequences of the withdrawal of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger.
The Commissioner, Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Abdel-Fatau Musah, said this at the meeting of ECOWAS Committee of the Chiefs of Defence Staff (CDS) on Tuesday in Abuja.
Musah said the formal withdrawal of the three countries from the regional bloc on Jan. 29 required critical analysis of the security arrangement within West Africa and the Sahel.
He called on the ECOWAS defence chiefs to critically examine the implications of their withdrawal on regional security in the course of their deliberations.
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According to him, the Central Sahel continues to be the epicentre of insecurity while the littoral states continue to bear the pressure.
“According to the Global Terrorism Index, Sahel accounted for 51 per cent of global terrorism deaths in 2024.
“Weak governance, ethnic tensions and ecological degradation have fuelled terrorism, worsened by transnational jihadist groups and geo-political competition.
“The Alliance of Sahelian States is changing alliances by removing western involvements in security and economic sectors and withdrawing from ECOWAS” he said.
Musah called for concerted effort to strengthen shared aspirations for a peaceful, secured and prosperous ECOWAS region.
He said that it was expedient for the meeting to further give momentum to the planning for the activation of the ECOWAS Standby Force (ESF) in its kinetic form for the fight against terrorism.
He said that the meeting was convened to discuss the tasks assigned from the last meeting in August 2024, and to examine recent developments and the general security situation in the region.
Speaking before the meeting went into a closed-door, the Minister of Defence, Abubakar Badaru said the meeting underscored their shared commitments for addressing the critical security challenges confronting the sub-region.
The meeting was attended by the Chief of Defence Staff of ECOWAS countries, except Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, which had withdrawn from the sub-regional body.
Others at the meeting were Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa, Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Olufemi Oluyede, Chief of Naval Staff, Emmanuel Ogalla, Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Hasan Abubakar, Chief of Defence Intelligence, Emmanuel Undiandeye, the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, and members of the diplomatic community.