MONROVIA – West African heads of State have concluded the 67th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Authority where they deliberated on a horde of critical matters of the Community and ushered in a new leadership. At the end of deliberations, the heads of state selected fellow colleague President Maada Bio of the Republic of Sierra Leone to take the baton of authority for the next two years, a move applauded by a neighboring brother, Liberia’s Joseph Nyuma Boakai. The Analyst reports.
President Joseph Boakai has congratulated President Julius Maada Bio on the Sierra Leonean leader’s ascension to the Chairmanship of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government.
President Bio was this afternoon announced as the next Chair at the close of the 67th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government at State House in Abuja, Nigeria.
The Liberian Chief Executive expressed his delight while conveying heartfelt congratulations to his Counterpart in next door neighboring State, Sierra Leone.
President Bio takes over the gavel of authority of ECOWAS from Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu who served two successive terms from July 2023.
As Chairperson, President Bio now presides over the Authority, the highest decision-making body of ECOWAS which comprises heads of state and government of the member states in the West African sub-region.
Three member states–Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger—recently withdrew their membership from the Community’s original 15 member states.
The Chair of the Authority’s mandate includes steering collective policy making on regional integration, peace and security, fostering economic policies, political governance, institutional reform, as well as advancing the common African position on the United Nations Security Council Reform.
ECOWAS was established in May of 1975 with a multi-prong vision of fostering economic integration, facilitating free movement of its citizens, promoting peace and stability as well as advancing democratic governance.
At the official opening ceremony, the official welcome and opening statement was delivered by His Excellency Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Chair of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government and President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, following a special statement by the President of the ECOWAS Commission, Dr. Omar Alieu Touray.
Messages of goodwill were also delivered by His Excellency Leonardo Santos Simao, Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary General for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS) and His Excellency Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, Chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission whose message was delivered by Ambassador Bankole Adeoye, Commissioner on Political Affairs, Peace and Security of the AU Commission.
Following the official opening ceremony, the Heads of State and Government went into their customary closed door session to deliberate on a slew of sub-regional issues.
Among issues on the agenda for discussion and disposition were the 2025 Interim Report on the State of the Community by the President of ECOWAS Commission, Dr. Omar Alieu Touray; report on the 54th Ordinary Meeting of the Mediation and Security Council at the Ministerial Level; report on the 94th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Council of Ministers, and update on Consultations with Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger in preparation for Negotiations following their withdrawal from ECOWAS.
Other issues were report of the 11th Session of the ECOWAS Convergence Council; report of the ECOWAS Trade Liberalization Scheme (ETLS) Task Force on the Implementation of intra-Community Trade Regulations by Member States; election of new Chair of Authority of Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS, decision on Date and venue of 68th Ordinary Session of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS.
At the press conference that followed the closed door session, outgoing ECOWAS Chairperson Tinubu, among other decisions, announced President Julius Maada Bio of the Republic of Sierra Leone as the one elected to succeed him as the Chair of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government.
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