In this clip, Ghana’s President Nana Akufo-Addo responds to a journalist’s question about Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger’s breakaway from – and potential for rejoining – the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
Akufo-Addo, who has twice served as ECOWAS chairman, says it would be better for the region if these three important Sahel nations were back in the bloc.
ECOWAS previously attempted to strong-arm the revolutionary trio into compliance through coercive tactics, including illegal and inhumane economic sanctions and threats of military intervention. But this backfired, as the three only strengthened their unity and resolve, forming the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) – ultimately forcing ECOWAS to back off.
As nations with clear anti-imperialist aims, they make no secret of seeking to break free from the neo-colonial stranglehold France has maintained over Francophone Africa for decades. ECOWAS, on the other hand, has proven to be a defunct institution that serves as little more than a mouthpiece and enforcement agency for French interests.
According to Samba Sylla, author of Africa’s Last Colonial Currency: The CFA Franc Story, ‘[France’s] capture of ECOWAS can be seen in the nature of the financial sanctions imposed on Mali in 2022 and Niger since the 2023 revolutionary putsch. No foreign country could order the central bank of a sovereign currency-issuer to prevent the government accessing its bank accounts and the domestic financial system.’
Given this context, why would the Sahel region regard ECOWAS as an ally of African people seeking liberation rather than a French-neo-colonial puppet?
Video credit: TV5Monde (YouTube)
Sources:
https://jacobin.com/2024/02/french-neocolonialism-coups-west-africa