President Bola Tinubu of Nigeria has been re-elected for another one-year term as Chairman of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government.
This decision was made on Sunday during the 63rd Ordinary Summit at the State House Conference Centre in Abuja, with leaders and representatives from 12 member states in attendance.
In his acceptance speech, President Tinubu said, “I have accepted to continue to deliver on this service with the great men and women on this democratic journey, to serve our interest and build democratic values on the structure we inherited.”
Originally, Tinubu’s first term was set to end on July 9, 2024. This extension will allow him more time to focus on reintegrating Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso into ECOWAS, given the recent political instability in these countries.
To support these efforts, Tinubu appointed Senegal’s President, Bassirou Faye as the Special Envoy of the ECOWAS Commission. Faye will work with Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, to mediate with the leaders of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, who had previously announced their exit from the community.
Tinubu stated, “Having a new mandate, I will request Faye of Senegal to please become our special envoy alongside Tuggar, to do a round-the-clock work with our brothers in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger and coordinate with me, if necessary, and with the commission.”
