ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — West Africa’s divided regional bloc on Sunday asked Senegal President Basirou Diomaye Faye maintain a dialogue with the three member states led by the military junta to try to reunify the region whose stability is threatened following his decision to leave the group in January.
At its summit in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, the bloc – known as ECOWAS – named Faye as its envoy to meet with Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, which formed their separate union after their respective blows fractured relationships with neighbors.
It was not immediately clear what the terms of the dialogue would be. The Senegalese president, who became Africa’s youngest leader following his electoral victory in March, “he has all the necessary credentials to serve as a facilitator,” said Omar Alieu Touray, president of the ECOWAS Commission, at the summit.
The three attacked countries have already said in their summit the day before who “irrevocably turned their backs on ECOWAS”. It is the first time in the bloc’s almost 50-year history that it has lost members in this way.
Analysts called Faye’s mission important during an unprecedented regional crisis. Still, it is very likely “not to be fruitful anytime soon” due to lingering regional tensions, said Karim Manuel, Middle East and Africa analyst at the Economist Intelligence Unit.
Touray said this is the worst time for the bloc in years. “Our region also faces risks of disintegration,” he added.
“When you leave an agreement, you certainly do not become a party to that agreement. If it is about free trade, free movement of people, the risk of losing these concessions remains,” said Touray.
In addition to the economic projects that ECOWAS said it may have to suspend in the three countries if they do not return, their withdrawal could also affect their citizens. ECOWAS — as West Africa’s main political and economic authority — offers free trade and visa-free movement within member states.
The departure of the three countries from the bloc could also affect neighbors on different fronts. They all share borders and deadly security crises that are now spreading across the region and what is the block seeking your partnership to fight. Observers also warned that coups d’état in countries could embolden other armed forces, especially in countries where citizens have complained about not benefiting from their rich natural resources.
Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, who was asked to continue serving as the bloc’s president as his one-year term drew to a close, called for new and stronger partnerships to develop the region amid its “tremendous challenges.” .
“Together, we can pave the way for a prosperous future for all of West Africa,” said Tinubu.
