The 46th Ordinary session of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has commenced in Accra, Ghana.
The meeting is taking place at the Movenpick Ambassador Hotel from Tuesday, 15th June to Saturday, 19th June 2021.
Delivering an opening address at the meeting, Ghana’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, said the meeting today was tasked to deliberate on critical issues such as the political and security situation in our region with the objective of making recommendations for the consideration of the Authority of Heads of State and Government.
According to her, the mediation and Security Council session is taking place against the backdrop of converging potentially existential threats to our region, which could undermine our regional integration process.
“Attacks by terrorists and extremist groups are worsening and cascading across the region, leaving no Member State spared as a potential target. On the political front, the region is concluding a major electoral cycle in which, while all the polls eventually ended peacefully, they were nonetheless characterised, at times, by tensions. The COVID-19 pandemic has also added a new layer of complexity, threatening social cohesion, welfare of citizens and economic recovery,” she said.
Beginning with the challenges of peace and security, despite our strong actions, the security environment across the region has witnessed increasing terrorists’ attacks. From the Sahel region through the Lake Chad Basin, attacks from terrorists and violent extremists have morphed with banditry, kidnapping, farmer- herder dynamics and transnational organized crime to leave a trail of death, destruction, despair and fear among our populations, she added.
“This is particularly the case in the frontline States of Burkina, Mali, Niger, and Nigeria where these deadly attacks have occurred. No Member State is spared as a potential target. The recent attacks in Burkina which led to 132 deaths among the civilian population, including children, is the latest example of this situation. Indeed, the terrorist groups are currently testing border defences of coastal nations with a view to extending their reach to Member States along the Gulf of Guinea.”
Meanwhile, she indicated that the Gulf of Guinea itself has recorded the highest incidents of piracy and related maritime criminality in the world.
The evolving developments in Chad, which straddles the Lake Chad Basin and the G5-Sahel countries, and the recent developments in Mali, could add an aggravating element to the security situation facing the region, according to the minister.
“Turning to the state of Democracy and Good Governance in our region, we note that West Africa has made measurable improvement in democracy with the successful conduct of elections in several Member States. Despite the challenges and restrictions necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic, the region managed to maintain the calendars of the constitutionally mandated electoral processes, which have become the norm in the region. In the period under review, Benin and Niger held Presidential elections, while Cabo Verde held legislative elections. This adherence to electoral calendars, with the support of ECOWAS electoral assistance, is helping to consolidate regional democratic culture.”
“During the period, in accordance with its modus operandi, our Community through the Commission made arrangements to promote dialogue between stakeholders before and after elections. It also provided electoral assistance to all the Member States organizing elections through technical and financial support, advisory roles and the deployment of election observer missions. In that regard the reconstitution of the Council of the Wise, which was inaugurated in Accra on 24 May 2021, is a step in the right direction. The Council of the Wise will be lending the needed support by engaging stakeholders in order to prevent socio-political crisis well before they erupt and lead to violence.”
“The socio-political crisis in Mali remains a priority for our region. In that respect, I would like to commend the work done by the Mediator, H.E. Goodluck Jonathan, Former President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The implementation of the decisions taken at the Extraordinary Summit of 30th May 2021 in Accra, Ghana, will be critical in bringing stability in Mali and in our Region. “
To be updated…
By Melvin Tarlue