ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- President Bola Tinubu on Sunday participated in deliberations at the 68th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government held at the State House Conference Centre, Abuja.
Although the summit took place on Nigerian soil, Vice President Kashim Shettima led Nigeria’s delegation, marking his first time heading the country’s team at an ECOWAS summit hosted locally while the President remains in the country.
Tinubu, who served as Chairman of ECOWAS from July 2023 to July 2025 before handing over to President Julius Bio of Sierra Leone, delegated Shettima to represent Nigeria at the session.
No official explanation was given for the arrangement.
The meeting, which commenced at about 3:00 p.m., featured what the draft agenda described as a “special debate on the future of the Community,” amid mounting political and security challenges across West Africa.
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In attendance were President Julius Bio of Sierra Leone, the current ECOWAS Chairman; President Patrice Talon of Benin; President José Maria Neves of Cabo Verde; President Alassane Ouattara of Côte d’Ivoire; President Adama Barrow of The Gambia; President John Mahama of Ghana; President Umaro Embaló of Guinea-Bissau; President Joseph Boakai of Liberia; President Bassirou Faye of Senegal; and President Faure Gnassingbé of Togo.
Mahama returned to office as Ghana’s president in January 2025, succeeding Nana Akufo-Addo.
Proceedings at the public opening ceremony included welcome remarks by the host country, an address by the President of the ECOWAS Commission, Dr Omar Touray, and an opening statement by ECOWAS Chairman Julius Bio.
Also scheduled to address the session were the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for West Africa and the Sahel, Leonardo Santos Simão, and the African Union Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Bankole Adeoye, before leaders moved into a closed-door meeting.
Items slated for discussion included the 2025 State of the Community report, briefings from the ECOWAS Mediation and Security Council, a report on the ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme, and special reports on Guinea-Bissau, the situation in Benin, the confirmation of a host country for the West African Health Organisation headquarters, and the political transition in Guinea.
The summit comes after five years of political upheaval in the subregion, marked by military coups in Mali in 2020 and 2021, Burkina Faso in 2022, and Niger in 2023.
These developments disrupted regional cohesion, with the military governments in Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso announcing their withdrawal from ECOWAS in early 2024.
Fresh concerns have also emerged following an attempted coup in Benin on December 7, 2025, and renewed instability in Guinea-Bissau, which former President Goodluck Jonathan described as a “ceremonial coup.”
In response to the attempted putsch in Benin, and at the request of the Beninese government, President Tinubu authorised the deployment of Nigerian military assets, including jets and troops, to help contain the situation.
On December 9, the Senate approved the President’s request to deploy Nigerian troops to Benin to assist in restoring calm and stability.
Benin’s foreign ministry later disclosed that about 200 West African troops, largely from Nigeria and Côte d’Ivoire, had been deployed to support the government, noting that Benin’s stability has significant economic implications for Nigeria.
Cotonou’s seaport remains a critical entry point for Nigerian-bound cargo, including vehicles and consumer goods, sustaining extensive re-export and informal trade networks.
The Sèmè border on the Lagos-Abidjan corridor is also among the busiest crossings in the region.
In addition, the 2,000-kilometre Niger-Benin crude oil export pipeline, financed by China, links Niger’s oil fields to the offshore terminal at Sèmè-Kpodji, making it a strategic economic and energy asset for both countries.
At the Abuja meeting, ECOWAS leaders are also expected to consider enhanced security collaboration, possible sanctions, and economic integration mechanisms, including the ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme, as part of efforts to stabilise the bloc.
They are also set to review the ECOWAS Commission president’s report and fix a date for the 69th Ordinary Session of the Authority.