The Implications of the Exit of the Sahelian States from ECOWAS.

Abstract:

This paper examined the implications of the exit of the Sahelian States from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). ECOWAs was created by fifteen West African states to promote economic integration and cooperation to raise the living standards of its people, and to maintain and enhance economic stability, foster relations-among Member States and contribute to the progress and development of the African Continent. Since its founding, ECOWAS has grom from the classical free trade to an economic and political union It has promoted trade liberalization free movement of people and established several institutions including the Community Parliament and Community Court. Recently, the number of ECOWAS’ membership has shrunk from fifteen to twelve with the military governments of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger withdrawing in 2024. Mauritania had withdrawn from ECOWAS in December 2000. The relationship between ECOWAS and the three Sahel State became very tense following military coups and the imposition by ECOWAS of crippling sanctions including the threat of the use force to restore democratic rule in Niger. In January 2025, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger formed the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) or Alliance des États du Sahel and accused ECOWAS of being too close to Western powers. Their withdrawal will have significant implications not only for the Sahelian states but to ECOWAS. Using the theoretical frameworks of liberal institutionalism and economic integration the study adopted a qualitative historical descriptive methodology to assess the implications of the exit of these countries for ECOWAS and the Sahelian states. The study among other things identified potential implications in terms of trade, political architecture, security, economics, and food security.