59th ECOWAS Summit Begins in Accra.

The 59th Ordinary Summit of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government opens today in Accra. ECOWAS Chair, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo,  presides over the meeting that will deliberate on issues threatening the peace and stability of the West African sub-region.

Some Heads of State have already made it to Accra for the Summit.  They include the President of The Gambia, Adama Barrow, Liberia’s George Manneh Weah, the President of Guinea, Alpha Conde, the Burkinabe President, Roch Marc Christian Kabore, Sierra Leonean President, Julius Maada Bio, and the President of Guinea Bissau, Umaro Sissoco Embalo.

In total, about 15 Heads of State in West Africa, except Mali, which has been suspended from the regional bloc, following the recent political upheavals in that country could attend the Accra meeting.

Other dignitaries expected to participate in the meeting are former Nigeria President, Mr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, the ECOWAS Special Envoy, mediating Mali’s political crisis

He will present a report on his recent visit to the West African country after the Emergency ECOWAS Summit held in Accra on May 30, 2021, as well as ECOWAS President, Commissioners, and supporting staff.

A communique will be issued at the end of the Summit to highlight key decisions reached during the deliberations.

Ms. Shirley Ayorko Botchwey, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration told journalists in a recent media briefing in Accra.

The Summit was preceded by the 46th Ordinary Meeting of ECOWAS Mediation and Security Ministerial Council on Tuesday, June 15, and the 86th Ordinary Meeting of ECOWAS Council of Ministers, on Wednesday, June 16th, and Thursday, June 17th at the Movenpick Hotel in Accra.

Foreign, Trade, Defence and Finance Ministers from 15 ECOWAS countries discussed ECOWAS Vision 2050, ECOWAS Information and Research Forum; humanitarian issues in the sub-region, report on ECOWAS Trade and Industry Ministerial meeting, Ministerial Report on ECOWAS Single Currency and New Convergence Path, Regional Flood Risk Initiative and Management Strategy as well as the ECOWAS Gender Strategy and Action Plan, ahead of the Summit.