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President Akufo-Addo has tasked the President, Commissioners and staff of the ECOWAS Commission to work to continue working to build a united, economically prosperous, politically stable and secure Community that meets the aspirations of the Community’s citizens.
The President of the Community Heads of State and Government Authority said: “As we complete the implementation of the ECOWAS Vision 2020 and finalize the development of Vision 2050, we must strive to make ECOWAS a Community in the one that our dreams of prosperity, peace, security, integration and development are realized for the well-being of its citizens ”.
The president said this on Monday when he paid a working visit to the ECOWAS Commission offices in Abuja, the capital of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Addressing a meeting of Commissioners and Commission staff, he explained that the purpose of his visit was to interact with the management and staff of the Community Institutions on the collective agenda on West African integration and development.
“The challenges in the areas of democracy, health, security, economy, trade and currency must be addressed in a spirit of genuine cooperation and solidarity, if we are to overcome them, which I am sure we can. I believe that collectively, we can all make ECOWAS the most viable regional bloc in Africa and realize the vision of transforming ECOWAS from ‘a body of states to a community of peoples,’ “said President Akufo-Addo.
To do this, the president outlined his 5-point Agenda for the presidency of the Community, which, he said, are the fight against terrorism; win the fight against COVID-19; trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA); the question of a monetary union in ECOWAS; and, finally, the consolidation of democratic governance in the Region.
He also commended the President of the ECOWAS Commission, His Excellency Jean-Claude Kassi Brou, and indeed the Commission for the achievements made in the areas of infrastructure, agriculture and humanitarian assistance.
“In infrastructure, I am aware that the Commission and its Specialized Agencies are implementing a series of infrastructure projects in the road, rail, maritime, energy and telecommunications sectors,” he said.
President Akufo-Addo continued: “I encourage the Commission to accelerate the implementation of infrastructure projects such as the Abidjan-Lagos Corridor Highway Development Project, the Praia-Dakar-Abidjan Corridor Development Program and the Dakar Railway Project. -Bamako. In telecommunications, the problem of the high cost of roaming services must be solved as soon as possible ”.
Regarding agriculture, the President affirmed that the issue of food security is vital for the development of the Community, since the twin shocks of terrorism and the COVID-19 pandemic have negatively affected the food security situation in the Region.
He therefore hoped that, together, the Community could work rapidly to ensure food security within the framework of the ECOWAS Agricultural Policy (ECOWAP).
“With regard to humanitarian assistance in the Region, the persistent terrorist attacks and the problems of climate change, particularly in the Sahel basin and Lake Chad, have caused significant internal displacement of people. The Commission must continue to address these issues and continue to provide assistance to refugees and internally displaced persons in the Region, ”he said.
In conclusion, President Akufo-Addo told the Commission that this generation of West Africans, indeed Africans, is undertaking one of the noblest endeavors in human history, devising the transformation of poor societies into prosperous on the basis of democratic values and principles. .
“European, American and Asian industrialization took place in times of limited franchises and authoritarian institutions. Ours is being done with full universal adult suffrage, in open societies. This is the magnitude of our challenge and the nature of our prize. We should all be proud to be front-line actors in this great drama, ”added the president.
