Mahama calls for renewed ECOWAS–Sahel Security Cooperation at London Summit

President John Dramani Mahama has called for renewed security cooperation between the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and countries in the Sahel, urging regional governments to work together to combat terrorism despite their political differences.

Speaking at the Financial Times Africa Summit in the United Kingdom, President Mahama said Sahel countries should be free to receive assistance from any partner willing to support their efforts against terrorism.

He said Ghana continued to cooperate with the United Kingdom, Germany, France and the United States through intelligence sharing, training and other security arrangements.

The President urged the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) to remain open to cooperation with interested partners, stressing that a coordinated regional approach was necessary to address the growing security challenges facing West Africa.

He said the existing Accra Initiative had stalled and that efforts were underway to establish a new framework for security collaboration.

President Mahama cited meetings in Accra and a recent engagement in Dakar, Senegal, involving ECOWAS negotiators and representatives of AES countries as encouraging steps towards renewed dialogue.

He expressed confidence that ECOWAS could rebuild its relationship with the Sahel countries, arguing that the regional bloc’s achievements in free movement and trade liberalisation provided a foundation for continued cooperation.

Using a metaphor to describe the relationship, he said the countries had not completely separated but had merely moved into different rooms within the same house.

He expressed hope that ongoing dialogue would lead to a practical working relationship, even if the AES countries were not immediately readmitted to ECOWAS.

President Mahama also identified funding as the principal obstacle to activating the ECOWAS standby force, rather than a shortage of trained personnel.

He said delays in implementing United Nations Security Council Resolution 2719, which provides a framework for financing African Union-led peace support operations through UN-assessed contributions, had complicated efforts to mobilise resources.

He added that restrictions on United States funding to the United Nations had further complicated the situation.

According to the President, African countries had the capacity to undertake some security interventions themselves but remained constrained by fragile economies and competing demands on public finances.

He expressed hope that the implementation of Resolution 2719 would provide the resources needed to operationalise the standby force.

President Mahama stressed that sustained dialogue, improved financing and stronger regional partnerships were essential to building a more effective collective response to terrorism and insecurity in West Africa.