Vice President Kashim Shettima has charged the new leadership of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission to prioritise regional unity and integration, including stronger engagement with the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), as part of efforts to advance peace, stability and economic development in West Africa.
Shettima said the changing political and economic landscape of the sub-region demanded greater cohesion, friendship and cooperation among West African countries, urging ECOWAS to take the lead in rebuilding relationships and pursuing programmes that directly improve the lives and livelihoods of the people.
The Vice President spoke on Friday in New York, United States, when he received a delegation of the ECOWAS Commission led by its new President, Generale Birame Diop (rtd), on the sidelines of the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly.
In a statement issued by Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications, Office of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, Shettima specifically urged the new management to deliberately engage emerging blocs in the region, particularly the AES, while strengthening the bonds among the peoples of West Africa.
‘Beyond your administrative duties, your leadership of the commission must make deliberate efforts to build bridges of friendship across the sub-region. ECOWAS should be at the forefront of our engagement with emerging blocs in the area such as Alliance of Sahel States (AES).
‘I urge ECOWAS under your leadership to champion the cause of regional integration and strengthen the bonds of unity and friendship among our people’, Shettima told the delegation.
The Vice President also called on the commission to give serious consideration to private sector participation in the execution of the Lagos-Abidjan highway project, stressing the importance of mobilising resources and partnerships capable of accelerating regional infrastructure and economic integration.
Congratulating Diop on his election as President of the ECOWAS Commission, Shettima observed that he was assuming the leadership of the regional body at a difficult period that required greater synergy and cohesion among governments and citizens of member countries.
He assured the new leadership of Nigeria’s continued cooperation and support for initiatives aimed at strengthening ECOWAS and accelerating the development of the sub-region.
‘My boss, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is a man of honour and conviction who will always support efforts aimed at advancing the transformation of ECOWAS as a regional body, and the progress of the area in general’, the Vice President said.
Shettima added that Nigeria would continue to provide an enabling environment for the regional organisation to succeed and contribute meaningfully towards achieving the vision and objectives of its founding fathers.
Earlier, Diop commended Nigeria for its role in the establishment and sustenance of ECOWAS over the years, as well as the sacrifices the country had made towards promoting stability and prosperity across West Africa despite prevailing challenges.
The ECOWAS Commission President said the region was confronting rising insecurity and development challenges, alongside other difficulties facing the commission, which he said would require Nigeria’s direct intervention as a ‘big brother’ to overcome.
Describing ECOWAS as an important instrument for regional stability that deserved sustained support, Diop called on other countries in the sub-region to cooperate with Nigeria in pursuing inclusive development and securing a better future for the people of West Africa.
Also at the meeting were the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu; Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Chief Lateef Fagbemi (SAN); Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Amb. Jimoh Ibrahim, and senior officials of the ECOWAS Commission.