Nigeria seeks closer security, economic ties with Sahel states

The Federal Government has pledged to strengthen security and economic cooperation with Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso as part of efforts to address terrorism, poverty, food insecurity and other shared challenges across West Africa.

The position was contained in a statement signed by the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Oluwafemi Adeniyi, on Saturday.

The Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye, disclosed this at the inaugural Ministerial Dialogue on Cooperation between the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the Confederation of Sahel States (AES), held in Dakar, Senegal, on Saturday.

Enikanolaiye said Nigeria was taking proactive steps to revive dormant joint commissions with the three Sahelian countries to strengthen bilateral relations, promote economic integration and deepen security partnerships.

He described the dialogue as strategically important to Nigeria and the wider West African sub-region, stressing the need for countries within ECOWAS and the AES to build on their shared geographical, historical, cultural and social ties.

The minister identified the management of the free movement of persons, goods and services, peace and security, terrorism, infrastructure deficits, poverty and food insecurity as major challenges requiring stronger regional cooperation.

He said sustained engagement among the countries would help address these challenges and promote the collective interests of their citizens.

The meeting was convened to establish a structured framework for dialogue and cooperation between ECOWAS and the AES, whose members share longstanding historical and socio-cultural connections.

As part of the outcomes, the parties agreed to establish joint thematic working groups to examine identified areas of cooperation and conduct technical exchanges towards developing a comprehensive cooperation framework agreement to guide future relations between the two regional blocs.

The meeting was attended by the foreign ministers of the three AES member states, the ECOWAS Chair of the Council of Ministers, Cheikh Niang, and the Coordinator of the AES Council of Ministers, Karamoko Jean-Marie Traoré.

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Niang is Senegal’s Minister of African Integration, Foreign Affairs and Senegalese Abroad, while Traoré is Burkina Faso’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Regional Cooperation and Burkinabe Abroad.

At the end of the meeting, participating delegations expressed appreciation to Senegal’s President, Bassirou Diomaye Diakhar Faye, who chairs the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, as well as the government and people of Senegal, for hosting the dialogue and their commitment to regional integration.

Nigeria reaffirmed its determination to work with regional partners to develop a balanced and realistic cooperation framework that guarantees the sovereignty and dignity of West African countries while promoting the well-being of their citizens.