ECOWAS rejects claims of interference in Guinea-Bissau's internal affairs

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission has rejected allegations that its recent mission to Guinea-Bissau interfered in the country's internal affairs.

The response follows a statement issued on June 29 by the National Campaign Committee of former presidential candidate Fernando Dias da Costa, which described remarks by the head of the ECOWAS mission as "unacceptable interference."

According to the Commission, the mission acted within a mandate approved by the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government and did not seek to influence Guinea-Bissau's constitutional or political processes.

"The Head of Mission was speaking on behalf of ECOWAS in the discharge of a collective mandate, and not in any national capacity," the Commission said in a statement issued from Abuja on Monday, June 29.

It explained that the mission was deployed to promote peace, constitutional order, political dialogue and regional stability, adding that it merely communicated the broad outlines of a political roadmap discussed with Guinea-Bissau's national authorities.

The Commission stressed that it neither announced nor endorsed any constitutional process on behalf of the people of Guinea-Bissau, insisting that decisions regarding the country's constitutional future remain the sole responsibility of its institutions and citizens.

"The Commission therefore regrets attempts to portray the work of an ECOWAS Mission as foreign interference. Such characterisations overlook both the multilateral nature of the Mission and the collective decisions of the Authority of Heads of State and Government that underpin its mandate," the statement said.

The Commission also called on all political stakeholders in Guinea-Bissau to exercise restraint, embrace constructive dialogue and work towards a peaceful, inclusive and nationally owned political process that strengthens democratic institutions and preserves the country's stability.

The country, which experienced a coup d'état on November 26, 2025; just one day before the official results of the November 23 general elections were to be announced, will go to the polls on December 6, 2026, to elect new leaders.