With Mohamed Jaward Nyallay
The ECOWAS [Economic Community for West African States] Commission last week inaugurated its new leadership, headed by Marcel Alain de Souza.
Outgoing President, Kadré Ouedraogo, officially handed over to his successor, de Souza of Benin, at a ceremony in the Nigerian capital Abuja, the seat of power for the West African regional bloc.
Mr Ouedraogo, a Burkinabe, served for four years as the president of the West Africa sub regional bloc. During the inaugural ceremony, he expressed his confidence in De Souza, a bureaucrat with a Masters degree in Economics.
De Souza served in different capacities at other regional organizations including being the Internal Controller at the Central Bank of French West Africa.
"I call on heads of institutions and all members of staff to support the new president in his task as they have done with me,” said Mr Ouedraogo, at the inaugural ceremony. He further expressed belief in de Souza’s ability to create more integration in the sub region in the coming years.
ECOWAS is a regional grouping comprising 15 member-West African countries. It was founded on 28 May 1975 through the Treaty of Lagos with a mission of promoting economic integration across the sub-region.
As part of ongoing reforms, the secretariat of the ECOWAS was in 2007 transformed into a Commission, headed by a President and supported by a Vice President and Commissioners responsible for various departments.
The new team at the Commission includes Sierra Leonean Allieu Sesay as Chair of the Commission for Finance. Sesay and other commissioners will serve a two year term as stated by ECOWAS laws. Sesay is the former Commissioner General of the National Revenue Authority in Sierra Leone.
Other members include Vice of the Commission, Edward D. Singhatey of The Gambia. Singhatey was part of a handful of young Gambian soldiers who staged a coup in 1994 alongside President Yahya Jammeh. He later fell out with Jammeh and went to pursue a law degree. Until now he served as a magistrate in Banjul.
Mrs. Halima Ahmed of Nigeria is the new Commissioner of Political Affairs, Peace & Security; Dr. Hamidou Boly of Burkina Faso, Commissioner for Education, Science and Culture; Antoinette Weeks of
Liberia, Commissioner for Infrastructure; Mamadou Traore of Mali, Commissioner Macro-Economic Policy; Laouali Chaibou of Niger,
Commissioner Trades, Customs and Free Movement; Tchambakou Ayassor of the Republic of Togo, Agriculture, Environment & Water Resources.
(C) Politico 13/04/16
