Unity Of ECOWAS Member States Key To Ending West African Security Threat, Says Touray

Dr. Omar Alieu Touray, President of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission, has stated that all member states of the regional bloc must work together to achieve maximum success in the fight against the pervasive threat of insecurity.

The President made the call in his message commemorating ECOWAS’s 49th anniversary under the theme “Strengthening Regional Unity, Peace, and Security,” adding that everything must be done to preserve the region’s unity.

In a statement, Touray stated that this year’s theme was chosen to reflect current challenges as well as to remind the Community of the importance of working to preserve regional unity and peace, two cherished objectives established by ECOWAS Founding Fathers.

He stated that “These are the goals that the ECOWAS Heads of State and Government work to protect every day through their efforts to ensure the security of our people and the integrity of our territories.”

He recalled that on May 28, 1975, the Heads of State and Government of fifteen West African countries signed the ECOWAS Treaty in Lagos, Nigeria, establishing the organisation.

He stated that neither the founding fathers nor current or future generations would understand or forgive any breakup of the Community.

Touray stated, “The Founding Fathers signed the treaty that established the Economic Community of West African States exactly 49 years ago.” Since then, ECOWAS has served the region and continues to bring our peoples together around the shared ideals of prosperity.

“It is clear that we must remain united if we are to succeed in the fight against insecurity.   However, our unity is under threat right now. “We must do everything to preserve our unity,” said General Yakubu Gowon, one of ECOWAS’s founding fathers.

“We are confident that by working together, we will maintain peace and strengthen our actions to protect our Member States and people.”

He added that through unity, we will preserve regional stability as well as our community’s harmonious political and socioeconomic development. Dr Touray stated that despite insecurity and other challenges, the region has achieved tangible and positive outcomes.

“ECOWAS has made many achievements, but the Community still faces a number of challenges. As we celebrate our 49th anniversary, insecurity persists in our region. Some of our member states fight terrorist groups on a daily basis, and a large number of our population faces displacement and food insecurity.

“As we commemorate the 49th anniversary of ECOWAS, let us reflect on some of the Community’s tangible and positive achievements.  These accomplishments can be seen in many areas, including free movement of our people, intra-community trade, regional energy and transportation infrastructure, governance, as well as peace and security.”

According to Touray, “We remain convinced that together we can build on these achievements and achieve the objectives in our Vision 2050 “of a fully integrated Community of Peoples in a peaceful and prosperous region with strong institutions that respect fundamental freedoms and work towards inclusive and sustainable development.”