
Delegates applaud region – wide democratic renaissance, harp on heightened internal economic development At The 48th ECOWAS Heads Summit.
The President of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Kadre Desire Ouadraogo, disclosed that the joint actions inspired and sustained by the Heads of State and Governments as well as institutions have been tremendous in fostering democratic growth, peace and cooperation in the West African region.
He made the statement at the opening ceremony of the 48th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Summit of Heads of State and Governments which held at the Banquet Hall of the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja on Wednesday 16th of December, 2015.
According to him, the action by President Faure Essozimna Gnassinqbe, who is the Coordinator for the Regional Response to the Ebola Epidemic during the scourge demonstrated remarkable commitment and determination. He also commended the crucial role of Nigeria in ascertaining its activities in the ECOWAS Community, expressing hope that the present administration in Nigeria will record more astounding successes.
Kadre Desire Ouadraogo said that Nigeria has remained true to her beautiful tradition of hospitality as she once again warmly received the delegations attending the 48th Ordinary Session of the Authority of ECOWAS Heads of State and Governments through its hospitality and other arrangements for the smooth conduct of the meeting. While expressing heartfelt gratitude to the Nigerian President and the people of Nigeria, he noted that this joy and pride has been shared with similar enthusiasm by all the Heads of Institutions and the ECOWAS staff.
He espoused his appreciation to the President of the West Africa Economic and Monetary Union Commission, Cheikh Hadjibou Soumare and the United Nations Secretary General’s Special Representative to West Africa, Mohamed Ibn Chambas, indicating that their presence at the event demonstrated the new and close friendship which ECOWAS shares with organisations. He also welcomed Nigeria’s former Head of State, Yakubu Gowon stating that he is one of the ECOWAS founding fathers as well as Edem Kodjo (Messrs) and Adebayo Adededji, who were among the Ministers that launched ECOWAS alongside their Heads of State.
Speaking further, he extended gratitude to Presidents Faure Essozimna Gnassingbe, Muhammadu Buhari, Alpha Con de, Alassane Ouattara and Roch Marc Christian Kabore for their brilliant victory at the end of the recent elections in the region. He commended the prompt action of the current Chairperson of the Authority of ECOWAS Heads of State and Governments – President Macky Sall of Senegal as well as Presidents Alpha Conde of Guinea, Yahya Jammeh of The Gambia and Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria for their roles in addressing the democratic problems in the region. He also expressed sincere gratitude to Nigeria’s former President, Olusegun Obasanjo for offering his wisdom and rich experience at the service of the ECOWAS Community.
Ouadraogo thanked all ECOWAS partners, countries and international institutions for their active solidarity, particularly the United Nations through the Special Representative of the Secretary – General in West Africa and the African Union. Adding, the International Francophonie Organization and the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries have contributed immensely to resolving the crises in Burkina Faso and Guinea-Bissau.
“To ensure a balance between the ECOWAS Commission’s financial resources and the increasing tasks assigned to the Commission, I have instructed the Commission’s relevant Departments to carry out a comprehensive study in 2016 on the Community’s financing mechanism. The study will also help us to harmonize the Community Levy Rate with the UEMOA Rate as agreed when the ECOWAS/CET was being adopted,” the ECOWAS President revealed.
“I am proud of the Commission’s contribution to the significant progress you have generously facilitated for our community to achieve. I fervently hope this faith and conviction are shared with our region’s vibrant youths.”
Earlier in a welcome address at the occasion, the Nigerian President, Muhammadu Buhari welcomed Heads of States, invitees and delegates to Abuja for the 48th Ordinary Session of the Summit of the Economic Community of West African States. He appreciated President Kafando and the entire members of his transitional government for the laudable efforts they deployed in the implementation of the Transitional Charter and the conduct of successful elections in Burkina Faso.
“While we wish President Kafando every success in his future endeavours, we congratulate, once again, President-elect Roch Marc Christian Kabore and wish him well in the governance of his country,” President Buhari said.
He recalled that the election in Burkina Faso completed the cycle of 2015 presidential elections in the region, successfully conducted in Nigeria, Togo, Guinea and Cote d’lvoire, adding that the remarkable achievement reflects the collective resolve to entrench democracy and good governance in the region. He observed that ECOWAS has indeed been universally acclaimed as a model regional economic community.
According to him, in spite of the significant achievements, the Community still faces numerous challenges. “While some militate against the integration drive, others continue to pose risks to peace and security as well as political stability in the region. The catastrophic consequences of climate change are manifest in our region,” the Nigeria President iterated.
President Buhari espoused heightened belief in the vast potentialities of the region and thanked bilateral and multilateral partners for their continued support and cooperation.
The Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Office for West Africa (UNOWA), Mohamed Ibn Chambas in a message delivered at the event said that the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon wishes the community success in its deliberations towards further advancing the peace, security and development of West Africa.
“We must all intensify our engagement, cooperation and collective will in combating the scourge of Boko Haram. The West Africa Coast Initiative (WACI) in support of the ECOWAS Regional Action Plan on Illicit Drug Trafficking, Organized Crime and Drug Abuse in West Africa is yet another example of the benefits of working in an integrated manner. It is the same spirit of enhancing regional security and development that guides our collaboration with the Mano River Union, the Gulf of Guinea Commission (GGC) and the Lake Chad Basin Commission, among others,” he emphasized.
“UNOWA and the United Nations system as a whole is committed to further solidifying its partnership with ECOWAS in addressing threats to peace and security in the region and in mobilizing international attention and support to combat these threats.”
In a statement made at the summit opening session, the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma (Dr) said that in the most recent UNDP Human Development Report of 2015, 37 African countries were still in the low human development categories, posing as the irresistible mainstream. Adding, ECOWAS countries formed the majority with only two countries from the region in the medium human development category.
Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma observed that a yet to answer question has been how can the situation persist when Africa has land, water, forests, oceanic resources, minerals, oil and gas as well as human resources in abundance and yet African people remain poor?
“We must therefore create peace and security, good governance and stability, build decentralized governance, and ensure that young people, boys and girls are in school and remain in school, create good jobs by industrializing; provide conditions for innovation and ensure that all African citizens, irrespective of their religion, language, gender can participate in the economic, social, political and cultural development of the continent,” Zuma averred.
“Africa at present provides access to higher education to less than 6% of its young people. Africa has sufficient resources to satisfy the needs of its people.”
Also speaking earlier, the Chairperson of the Authority of ECOWAS Heads of State and Governments – President Macky Sall of Senegal in an opening remark welcomed the delegates to the event, reiterating commitment to the course of the West African region. [ECOWAS/FMI]
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