ECOWAS lifts economic, travel sanctions on Niger, others

ECOWAS lifts economic, travel sanctions on Niger, others

ECOWAS

President Bola Tinubu and other West African Heads of State gather at the State House Conference Centre, Abuja, for the extraordinary summit on the political, peace and security situation in the region. Credit: Stephen Angbulu

The Economic Community of West African States on Saturday lifted economic sanctions on Niger, Mali and Burkina-Faso with immediate effect.

This followed hours-long deliberations by the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government at an extraordinary summit on the political, peace, and security situation in the region at the State House, Abuja.

Announcing the Authority’s resolutions, President of the ECOWAS Commission, Dr Omar Touray, said it has suspended the closure of the land and air border to Niger, a no-fly zone of all commercial flights.

It has also suspended the freezing of all financial transactions between ECOWAS states and Niger, including transactions relating to the bloc’s central bank and the unfreezing of all of Niger’s assets at EBID.

It also lifted the travel ban on members of the military junta and their families.

Touray said the move is “based on humanitarian considerations due to lent and the approaching month of Ramadan.”

The authority also lifted sanctions on the election of Mali citizens to ECOWAS positions.

It also lifted sanctions on Guinea, inviting all four countries to attend technical consultative meetings of ECOWAS going forward.

ECOWAS also asked its withdrawing member states to reconsider their decision in view of the benefits enjoyed by their citizens.