By Uche Onyeali
Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, is meeting in Accra, Ghana, to discuss the withdrawal of the Republics of Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso from the regional bloc.
The organisation in a statement issued yesterday said the discussions would last two days.
ECOWAS, in the statement, said key items on the agenda would include discussions on modalities of the countries withdrawal and the potential implication for the bloc’s institutions operating within those states.
“The bloc will also address other related matters of regional importance,” the statement said.
The meeting coincides with ECOWAS golden jubilee celebration in Accra.
The three West African countries left the bloc after ECOWAS condemned the military leaders who ousted democratically elected governments in their respective states.
Mali’s military leaders overthrew the civilian government in 2020 and 2021, followed by Burkina Faso in 2022 and Niger Republic in 2023, which led to these countries being suspended and subjected to sanctions by ECOWAS.
The situation escalated when, in July 2024, the military juntas of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso announced their decision to irrevocably turn their backs on ECOWAS.
They accused the regional bloc of imposing “inhumane and irresponsible” sanctions and failing to address their internal security crises.
This unprecedented move marked the first time in ECOWAS history that member states sought to leave the organisation.
After nearly a year of mediation efforts to prevent disintegration with little success, it officially approved an exit timeline for these three coup-hit nations spanning January to July.
The countries have since formed a new regional bloc called the Alliance of Sahel States, AES, and have imposed a levy on ECOWAS member states, disrupting the free trade that the region enjoyed and escalating tensions.
