Africa-Press – Cape verde. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is holding an extraordinary summit in Abuja today to discuss the crisis within the organization, marked by the announced abandonment of three member countries and the political crisis in Senegal.
The organization, which includes 15 West African states, has been plunged into an unprecedented crisis since Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso announced their withdrawal from the regional organization at the end of January.
The region was also recently shaken by the sudden decision of the President of Senegal, Macky Sall, to postpone the country’s presidential elections, scheduled for next Sunday, which triggered violent protests in the country.
On February 8, the heads of diplomacy of the ECOWAS member countries also held an extraordinary summit in Abuja, the capital of Nigeria, which currently holds the presidency of the organization.
At this summit, ECOWAS declared that the request from Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, countries led by military junta, to leave the organization, does not meet the statutory conditions for acceptance.
The three countries announced on January 28 that they wish to leave ECOWAS with immediate effect.
Article 91 of the ECOWAS Treaty stipulates that member countries remain bound by their obligations for a period of one year following notification of their withdrawal.
In recent years, West Africa has been the scene of coups d’état, coup attempts or postponement of elections in six countries of its 15 member states.
Eight of the member states are former French colonies – Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea-Conakry, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo -, five were part of the British colonial empire – Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone -, and the remaining two – Cape Verde and Guinea-Bissau – are Portuguese-speaking.
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