Exit of three members from ECOWAS: Matters arising

More than a week ago, the diplomatic restriction occasioned by the successive coups in three West African states of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger has culminated in the balkanisation of the 49-year old Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) with the announcement of the exit of the three countries on account of what the trio sees as ECOWAS mission creep.

The trio accused ECOWAS of being unable to enhance their security and sovereignty while imposing punishing sanctions on their people. According to a joint statement from the three countries, “in more than a decade of the security crisis in the Sahel and the fight against terrorism, ECOWAS has never demonstrated the slightest compassion towards the battered people of Burkina, Mali, and Niger, even provided any significant military, material or financial support to our countries.” In fact, Traore, the Burkina Faso leader, argued that the creation of the regional organisation was for integrating people, promoting development, economy, solidarity and mutual aid, but the organisation had lost those values. In his words, “…with the passage of time, the organisation has lost these values. Today, the facts are clear. For more than a decade, Mali and Niger have been at war with terrorism. And in Burkina Faso, we’ve been at war for almost a decade. We have never received any aid from this organisation.”
  
Burkina Faso suffered its second coup in September 2022 with the ascension to power of Captain Ibrahim Traoré, the 34-year-old head of an artillery unit of the Armed Forces of Burkina Faso. The coup ousted the previous junta leader, Lieutenant Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Gambia. The rationale for the putsch was the deteriorating security situation in the country.