West Africa’s unity not optional, President Bio tells ECOWAS leaders

The Chair of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and President of the Republic of Sierra Leone, Julius Maada Bio, has declared that unity among West African states was no longer optional but essential, warning that insecurity, democratic backsliding and economic pressures in any one country now pose a direct threat to the stability of the entire sub-region.

Opening the 68th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, on Sunday in Abuja, Bio said the meeting came at a defining moment in the bloc’s 50-year history, urging leaders to renew the founding vision of solidarity, cooperation and collective progress.

“Our unity is not optional. It is the foundation of our peace, security and prosperity, and the only credible response to the challenges confronting our region.”

Bio warned that West Africa was facing some of the most complex threats in its history, including terrorism, violent extremism, organised crime and unconstitutional changes of government, with the Sahel remaining particularly fragile.

“Instability in one nation is instability for all. No border can isolate us from violence or fragmentation. The region’s response must be united and uncompromising.

He strongly condemned recent attempts to undermine constitutional order in Guinea-Bissau and Benin, describing them as assaults on the collective stability of the region.

Commending the swift response of the bloc, Bio praised the role of Nigeria in coordinating decisive political and security action to defend democracy. “ECOWAS does not and will not compromise on democratic governance,” he said.

Bio said the region’s response to insecurity must go beyond military action to address governance failures, social exclusion and economic deprivation.

“Security is not only a military obligation; it is a human imperative,” he said, outlining plans to strengthen intelligence sharing, coordinated border operations and sustainable financing for regional counterterrorism efforts.

On the economic front, Bio underscored that regional integration was essential to tackling rising living costs, shrinking opportunities and external economic shocks. He reaffirmed commitments to deepen trade liberalisation, advance monetary convergence and accelerate cross-border infrastructure, stressing that integration must deliver tangible benefits to citizens.

“Our citizens expect leadership, not hesitation,” Bio said as deliberations continued behind closed doors. “Let us be defined not by the crises we have faced, but by the unity we strengthened and the lives we improved.”

Representing Nigeria’s President, Vice President Kashim Shettima echoed the call for unity, portraying West Africa as a family bound by history, culture and shared struggle rather than by chance.

“We do not share geography by accident. We share it by design, by history and by the entire logic of kinship. Disagreements should never erode the region’s sense of belonging.”

Shettima warned that internal divisions posed a greater danger than external pressure, noting that violent extremism, arms proliferation, cyber insecurity, climate shocks, food insecurity and irregular migration recognised no borders.

“No single member state, regardless of size, can endure stability in isolation. Our unity is not transactional; it is foundational.”

Adding the perspective of the ECOWAS institutions, the President of the ECOWAS Commission, Omar Alieu Touray, said the authority of heads of state remained the backbone of the community’s integration, peace and development agenda.

He praised leaders for maintaining regular consultations over five decades, describing their closed-door deliberations as critical to preserving the ideals of the bloc’s founding fathers.

Touray said recent events had demonstrated, in practical terms, the meaning of regional solidarity, citing the bloc’s response to political crises in Guinea-Bissau and Benin.

He said the swift and collective action by heads of state underscored ECOWAS’ firm commitment to democratic values and regional stability.

The Commission president said ECOWAS was also intensifying efforts to revitalise economic integration under its Vision 2050 agenda, noting that global geopolitical shifts, terrorism and pressures on multilateralism posed serious challenges to the bloc’s long-term goals.

He disclosed plans to advance the operationalisation of the ECOWAS Business Council to mobilise regional capital and strengthen intra-regional investment.

“Intra-regional investment is a key driver of trade in our community, and we must give preference to our regional private sector actors,” Touray said.

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