The military governments of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger have declared their immediate withdrawal from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
On Sunday, January 28, the countries’ military administrations announced their resignation from the regional union in a unified statement broadcast on Niger’s national television.
The leaders of the three Sahel states issued a statement stating that leaving the Economic Community of West African States was a “sovereign decision” that should be implemented “without delay.”
“After 49 years, the valiant peoples of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger regretfully and with great disappointment observe that the (ECOWAS) organization has drifted from the ideals of its founding fathers and the spirit of Pan-Africanism,” Colonel Amadou Abdramane, Niger junta spokesman, said in the statement.
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“The organization notably failed to assist these states in their existential fight against terrorism and insecurity,” Abdramane added.
The regimes have had tense relations with ECOWAS since coups occurred in Niger in July 2023, Burkina Faso in 2022, and Mali in 2020.
Following the military coup in Niger in July, ECOWAS imposed sanctions and threatened military intervention. All three were suspended from ECOWAS, with Niger and Mali facing severe sanctions.
In September 2023, the three countries signed a mutual defence treaty to help each other combat armed revolt or external assault. The pact, Alliance of Sahel States, binds the countries to assist one another, including militarily, if one of them is attacked.
At the time, Mali’s military leader Assimi Goita said on his X social media account, “I have today signed with the Heads of State of Burkina Faso and Niger the Liptako-Gourma charter establishing the Alliance of Sahel States, with the aim of establishing a collective defence and mutual assistance framework.”
A Gentle Reminder: Every obstacle is a stepping stone, every morning; a chance to go again, and those little steps take you closer to your dream.
Nnamdi Okoli