Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger Coups Fuelling Insecurity In West Africa – ECOWAS

The Economic Community of West African States, on Wednesday, said the military coups in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger are fuelling insecurity in the region.

The ECOWAS Commission President, Omar Touray, made this known in his welcoming statement at the 51st Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Mediation and Security Council at Ministerial Level in Abuja on Wednesday.

A coup d’etat was launched in Burkina Faso on January 23, 2022; Mali on May 24, 2021 and coup took place in Niger Republic on July 26, 2023.

Touray noted that the overall security environment in the region has continued to be challenged, adding that “On the political front, the transition roadmaps and timetables agreed with the transition authorities in Mali, Guinea, and Burkina Faso for rapid and peaceful restoration of constitutional order have been implemented at varied paces amid worsening security situations.

“The attempted coup d’état in Niger has further distracted attention from the support to these transition processes as the transition countries seek to forge a solidarity with the military authorities in the Republic of Niger, thereby creating an impression of a divide between them and ECOWAS.”

Touray noted that these military coups are not only “based on fake narrative and false justifications; they are also a driver of insecurity in the region.”

To drive home the gravity of the insecurity to which military coups contribute from January 1–October 23 2023, the president said, “In just Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, a total of 4.8 million people face food insecurity, 2.4 million people are internally-displaced and close to 9 000 schools remain closed.