The regional bloc ECOWAS has expressed grave concerns about the risk of regional disintegration and worsening insecurity following the decision by Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger to leave the bloc by signing a confederation treaty.
The Alliance of Sahel States treaty, signed on Saturday, signals the three countries’ resolve to turn their backs on the 15-member ECOWAS, which has been urging them to return to democratic rule. This move could undermine nearly 50 years of regional cooperation.
At the end of it meeting in Nigeria’s capital Abuja, ECOWAS Commission President Omar Touray highlighted the potential loss of significant benefits, including freedom of movement and a common market of 400 million people, which could be jeopardized if these countries exit the bloc.
He also warned that economic projects worth over $500 million in Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger could be halted or suspended.
Touray added that the withdrawal of these countries would be a major blow to security cooperation, particularly in terms of intelligence sharing and the collective fight against terrorism.
ECOWAS leaders convened at a summit in Abuja, Nigeria, to discuss the implications of the Alliance of Sahel States’ treaty. These transitional leaders, which seized power in a series of coups from 2020 to 2023, have severed military and diplomatic ties with regional allies and Western powers.