Nigeria joined other West African nations on Tuesday, 9 December 2025, at the 55th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Mediation and Security Council (MSC) at the Ministerial level, where leaders and representatives convened in Abuja to review the region’s increasingly fragile political and security landscape.
The President of the ECOWAS Commission, H.E. Dr. Omar Alieu Touray, set the tone of the meeting in his opening remarks, highlighting the urgency for stronger collective action amid rising military interventions, declining electoral standards, escalating terrorist activities, and worsening humanitarian conditions across West Africa. Citing a recent regional risk assessment, Dr. Touray noted that the Community now faced an average high-risk rating an alarming indicator he described as a “state of emergency.” He called for more frequent MSC sessions and enhanced cooperation among Member States to tackle the situation decisively.
Chairman of the Council and Sierra Leone’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, H.E. Musa Timothy Kabba, reiterated ECOWAS’ unwavering zero-tolerance stance on unconstitutional changes of government. He referenced the swift ECOWAS responses to the coup in Guinea-Bissau and the attempted coup in Benin, stressed that the credibility of the regional body depend on consistent, firm measures that protect constitutional order. He added that West African citizens are looking to the Council for timely and impactful decisions that reinforce peace and stability.
Nigeria’s delegation to the meeting included Gen. Christopher Musa (Rtd.), Honourable Minister of Defence; Ambassador Dunoma Umar Ahmed, PhD, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Ambassador Olawale Emmanuel Awe, Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to ECOWAS; and Ambassador Mrs. Nonyelum Afoekelu, Director, ECOWAS National Unit, among other senior officials. Their presence underscored Nigeria’s sustained leadership role and its steadfast commitment to strengthening regional peace and security architecture.
With terrorism on the rise, displacement affecting more than 7.6 million people, and emerging geopolitical pressures threatening regional cohesion, the Council renewed its resolve to deepen stability efforts, safeguard credible electoral processes, uphold the ECOWAS constitutional convergence principles, and reinforce coordinated responses to evolving threats.
The recommendations adopted at the session will be presented to the Authority of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government for further consideration as the Community continues to advance its mission of promoting peace, security, and the welfare of its citizens.
