Africa-Press – Gambia. ECOWAS has supported member states with $1.9 million to improve care for women and girls suffering from obstetric fistula as the 91st Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Council of Ministers opened in Abuja, Nigeria last Thursday.
The two-day ministerial meeting considered some memoranda and the security situation of the region.
The ECOWAS member states that benefit from the 2023 special allocation are Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Nigeria and Togo.
During the opening ceremony of the two-day ministerial meeting, the ECOWAS Commission, through the ECOWAS Gender Development Centre (EGDC), donated the sum of USD 1,960,000 to some Member States: $245,000 per receiving member state to improve care for women and girls suffering from obstetric fistula.
The programme has three components; prevention through awareness creation and information, medical care through reconstructive surgery and socio-economic reintegration of rehabilitated women. This is the famous 3R triptych: Repair, Reinstate and Restore.
Declaring the two-day 91st Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Council of Ministers meeting closed, His Excellency Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, the Chairman of the Council and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, underscored the pivotal role of democracy in fostering development in West Africa. Drawing on Nigeria’s historical transition from military to democratic governance, he highlighted the transformative power of democratic principles in driving progress and prosperity within nations.
Ambassador Tuggar emphasized the progress achieved in the common market and regional integration programs. He highlighted advancements in the introduction of a single currency program which, he noted, further strengthens economic ties and fosters harmonization within the ECOWAS community.
The meeting provided an opportunity to discuss several important matters such as the region’s initiatives to combat money laundering and the importance of upholding democratic governance. These discussions, it’s hoped, will greatly contribute.
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