• As the court urges Nigeria to lead by example
Worried by the apathy that meets decisions of the ECOWAS Court of Justice by political leaders in West Africa, Nigeria’s Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), has called for reforms that will strengthen the enforcement of the court’s judgments.

Speaking on Monday at a Special Forum to mark the 50th anniversary of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Fagbemi warned that weak compliance undermines regional justice and integration.

The SAN noted that while the court has recorded significant milestones since its establishment in 2001, its authority was weakened by persistent enforcement challenges and structural gaps.

Acknowledging that the Court had delivered landmark judgments on human rights, governance and media freedom, “enforcement deficit” remained a challenge, as the court lacks direct enforcement powers.

According to him, some rulings have been criticised as stretching jurisdiction beyond the court’s mandate or imposing obligations that are difficult to enforce domestically.

Fagbemi also observed that the absence of an appellate mechanism had contributed to perceptions of rigidity.

“Because judgments of the court are final, states sometimes feel constrained by decisions they cannot challenge through a second-tier review process,” he noted.

He felt that the lack of layered oversight and follow-up procedures had made its decisions more vulnerable to resistance, especially in politically-sensitive cases or where substantial financial awards were involved.

Fagbemi further identified limited political authority, dependence on voluntary compliance by member states, as well as inconsistent enforcement across sectors, as some of the factors that had created a culture where non-compliance often carried minimal consequences.

He therefore canvassed such reforms as the establishment of a regional supervisory mechanism to monitor decision compliance, application of political pressure where necessary, introduction of an appellate or review process to enhance confidence in the court’s decisions, as well as creation of structured compliance hearings and mandatory follow-up reporting.