ECOWAS LIFTS SOME SANCTIONS IMPOSED ON MALI, NIGER AND BURKINA FASO

Sun 25 February 2024:

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on Saturday lifted economic and travel sanctions on Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso with immediate effect.

The ECOWAS Commission lifted travel, commercial, and economic sanctions imposed on all three countries that were aimed at reversing military coups staged in the countries in 2023, 2022, and 2021, a senior official announced Saturday.

The sanctions will be lifted with immediate effect, ECOWAS Commission President Omar Alieu Touray said after a meeting of the bloc in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja.

President of the ECOWAS Commission, Dr Omar Touray, said this at the end of the extraordinary session of the Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS on Saturday in Abuja.

He said that the authority took note of the period of Lent and the approaching month of Ramadan and the impact on citizens, adding that pleas were also received from prominent leaders including retired Gen. Yakubu Gowon.

“The authority takes note that the withdrawal will have political, social, socio-economic, financial, and institutional implications for the three countries as well as for ECOWAS as a region.

“The authority recalls that within the framework of regional cooperation against terrorism, violent extremism and organised crime, the three countries benefited from about 100 million US dollars mobilised by UMR within the context of the ECOWAS plan of action against terrorism.

“Moreover, some funds allocation, about 7.5 million US dollars is being made towards supporting the three countries in acquiring the equipment to help their fight against terrorism.

The three were suspended from ECOWAS following recent coups.

Since then, they have declared their intention to permanently withdraw from the bloc, but ECOWAS has called for the three states to return.

Speaking in his opening remarks at the start of the summit, ECOWAS chairman and Nigerian President Bola Tinubu said the bloc “must re-examine our current approach to the quest for constitutional order in four of our Member States”, referring to the three suspended countries, as well as Guinea, which is also military-led.

Tinubu urged Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso to “reconsider the decision” and said they should “not perceive our organisation as the enemy”.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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