By Anule Emmanuel
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on Sunday re-elected Nigerian President Bola Tinubu to lead the regional bloc as chairman for a second term of one year.
Authority of Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS who decided during its 65th Ordinary Session in Abuja also appointed the President of Senegal, Bassirou Faye, as Special Envoy of the West African bloc’s commission to mediate with leaders of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger in resolving their earlier exit from the community.
The newly elected chairman Tinubu announced that President Faye will run the new task alongside Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar.
While accepting the honor done him of the re-election, President Tinubu promised to serve with utmost commitment.
“The Regional Action Plan against Terrorism has enhanced cooperation on training, intelligence sharing, and humanitarian interventions. In addition to this, the Ministers of Finance and Defence met recently in Abuja to raise funds for activating the ECOWAS Standby Force to boost counter-terrorism efforts.
“Member countries are also displaying their commitment to combating insecurity by individually increasing their defence budgets to acquire necessary equipment and ensure preparedness,’’ the President said.
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President Tinubu therefore urged member states to commit more to providing the needed resources for securing the region.
“Let me underscore that a peaceful and secure society is essential for achieving our potential. As we move to operationalize the ECOWAS Standby Force (ESF) in combating terrorism, I must emphasize that the success of this plan requires not only strong political will but also substantial financial resources.
“We must, therefore, ensure that we meet the expectations and recommendations set forth by our Ministers of Defence and Finance, to counter insecurity and stabilize our region,’’ the President added.
President Tinubu advised ECOWAS leaders to leverage the capabilities of Nigeria’s National Counter-Terrorism Centre (NCTC), which has been widely acknowledged as one of the best on the continent.
The President said his government has decided to make the NCTC a regional center to enable all ECOWAS member states to benefit from capacity building and other related opportunities it offers.
He advised the management of ECOWAS to re-align and reposition its priorities by reducing overheads and setting up in-country steering committees.
“Difficult economic conditions and inconsistent payment of financial commitments to ECOWAS have contributed to the current plight. To ensure ECOWAS has adequate resources for its programs and activities, I urge all member states to ensure full compliance with the Protocol on the Community Levy.
“Nigeria, under my leadership, is committed to leading by example in remitting its collected levies to the organization. Nevertheless, the ECOWAS management must also reduce its overhead expenditures and focus on programmes and activities that directly impact the lives of our citizens.
“I am aware of the progress report on the implementation of the ECOWAS Institutional Reforms. I therefore call on the President of the ECOWAS Commission to resume and expedite the conclusion of the second phase of the Institutional Reforms, aimed at reducing the organization’s operational costs,’’ the President said.
