ECOWAS BUDGET SESSION BEGINS WITH AFC MEETING IN ABUJA

T he President

of the ECO-

WAS Commis-

sion, His Excel-

lency Kadre De-

sire Ouedraogo

has appealed to

Member States

of the 15-

member organi-

zation to faith-

fully implement

the Community Levy Protocol and Mechanisms, to provide

the organization with the funds needed for effective dis-

charge its obligations.

“I urge all Member States to consistently implement the

Community Levy Protocol and Mechanisms in order to

provide the community with the necessary funds to meet

its financial obligations,” the President told delegates to

the 14th meeting of the ECOWAS Administration and Fi-

nance (AFC) Committee, which opened in Abuja on Mon-

day, 4th November 2013.

The levy from a 0.5 percent tax imposed on goods from

non-ECOWAS Member States is used to finance the pro-

grammes and activities of the ECOWAS Commission and

other Community institutions.

Recently, the implementation of the community levy re-

gime has been faced with challenges mainly related to the

interpretation of the goods covered by the levy.

Describing the AFC, an ECOWAS statutory organ, as

one of the main drivers of the regional integration project,

President Ouedraogo urged its members to examine with

the characteristic wisdom and selflessness the 2014 draft

budget of the community, one of the agenda items of the

week-long meeting.

He assured that the “distractive and resource consum-

ing crises” suffered by the region will not affect the focus

of the Commission and other Community institutions in

delivering on their core integration objectives and meeting

the yearnings of citizens through “strict implementation of

the decisions of our leaders.”

The ECOWAS chief informed the meeting, attended by

heads of ECOWAS National Units and experts from the

ministries of finance that the European Union plans to

double its allocation to regional integration programmes

for West Africa under its 11th European Development

Fund, in recognition of the growing importance of regional

integration and the credibility of the ECOWAS Commis-

sion.

The President assured of sound stewardship and pru-

dent utilization of the EU funds which will augment the

estimated income from external sources in the Communi-

ty’s 2014 budget.

Earlier, the chairman of the AFC, Mr. Minourou Silla of

Cote d’Ivoire commended members of the Committee for

attaching the greatest importance to the Community

ECOWAS Bulletin Volume 28 4th - 10th NOVEMBER, 2013

President Ouedraogo with Mr. Silla during the opening

Justice Ramos Benfeito (Vice President ECOWAS Court) with Commissioners Lapodini

Marc Atouga and Adrienne Diop

Faces at the meeting

budgetary process and urged them to maintain their can-

dour and dispassionate disposition in considering the 2014

budget.

In addition to the Community budget, the committee will

be briefed on the status of the implementation of the tasks

assigned to the ECOWAS Commission and the other Insti-

tutions, and also consider the report of the Financial Con-

troller among other issues.

STAKEHOLDERS DEMAND MORE ACTION FROM ECOWAS LEADERS

E COWAS

leaders

and Member

State have

been chal-

lenged to

translate

their various

decisions

and state-

ments on

regional in-

tegration

into concrete actions.

Participants at an interactive workshop organized by

the ECOWAS Commission in Accra on Monday 4th Novem-

ber 2013 on the sidelines of the ongoing 7th Regional Trade

Fair, called for greater political willingness on the part of

leaders of Member States and governments to give meaning

to their avowed commitment to regional integration.

Some of the participants cited the incessant extortion

and molestation of community citizens at various border

posts by security agents and the multiplicity of check-

points as impediments to free movement of persons, goods

and services, enshrined in the ECOWAS flagship protocol.

They noted that as major stakeholders in the integration

agenda, governments and their agencies should ensure the

full implementation of the legal instruments and texts they

have signed to.

Answering questions raised by the participants after his

presentation on the ECOWAS Trade Liberalization Scheme

(ETLS) and the Common External Tariff (CET), Mr. Felix

Kwakye, a Customs expert at the Commission, explained

that the Commission and the other Community Institu-

tions have continued to step up efforts on citizen sensitiza-

tion and advocacy around the integration process.

“Regional integration is a collective responsibility requir-

ing the support and cooperation of all stakeholders includ-

ing all the Member States, Governments, civil society or-

ganizations, the private sector and the citizens,” he af-

firmed.

Dr. Sacko Seydou and Mr. Adou Koman, both from the

Commission’s Trade Directorate, expatiated on the many

benefits of improved trade to Member States and Commu-

nity citizens in general.

The ECOWAS officials also shed further light on the citi-

zen rights, responsibilities and their vital contributions to

the realization of the ECOWAS goal of regional integration

and economic development.

The workshop, under the Trade Fair’s theme: “Regional

Integration through Trade,” is part of activities on

the margin of the biennial fair, which Ghana is

hosting for the second time since its inception in

1995.

Benin and Burkina Faso observed their National

Day on 1st November, followed by Cape Verde and

Cote d’Ivoire on 2nd November.

The ECOWAS Day was celebrated on 2nd Novem-

ber with a flag hoisting ceremony attended by Vice

President of the Commission, Dr. Toga McIntosh

and the Commissioner for Trade, Free Movement

and Tourism, Mr. Hamid Ahmed, among others.

The other participating countries will take their

turns in marking their National Days at the fair

which is also featuring Business to Business talks,

trading and exchange of information and ideas by

traders, manufacturers, investors and industrial-

ists from within and outside the region.

ECOWAS Bulletin 4th - 10th November, 2013 Volume 28/2013 2

PUBLISHED BY!

DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATION, ECOWAS COMMISSION ; 101 YAKUBU GOWON CRESCENT, ASOKORO, ABUJA-FCT. NIGERIA Tel: (234-9) 314 7641/314 7647/ 314 4227-9 Fax: (234-9) 314 3005/ 314 7641 Email: info@ecowas.int, Website: www.ecowas.int

(l-r); Mr. Koman, Mr. Nii Lantey Vanderpuye, Ghana’s Deputy Minister of Trade and

Industry , Mr. Kwakye and Dr. Seydou

Hoisting of the ECOWAS Flag during the celebration of the ECOWAS Day at the Fair

(l-r); Mr. Hamid, Dr. McIntosh with Dr. Gbenga Obideyi (ECOWAS

Director for Trade)

REGIONAL EXPERTS CALL FOR ACTION PLAN ON INTEGRATED MARITIME STRATEGY

W est African

maritime

experts have

urged the ECO-

WAS Commission

to facilitate the

development of a

detailed action

plan for the im-

plementation of

the proposed

ECOWAS Inte-

grated Maritime

Strategy (EIMS).

At the end their two-day meeting in Banjul on 1st No-

vember 2013 to review and validate the draft EIMS, the

experts envisages the action plan to outline the roles of

various stakeholders in support of the strategy designed to

address the multifaceted challenges to the realization of the

ECOWAS Maritime Domain (EMD).

They urged the Commission to promote the harmoniza-

tion of National Maritime safety and security initiatives

among Member States.

The experts also called for the accreditation of the Accra-

based Regional Maritime University and the Regional Mari-

time Academy of Science and Technology, in Abidjan as

ECOWA Centers of Excellence.

They expressed satisfaction with the draft strategic

framework which comprises five objective areas aimed at

strengthening maritime governance; safeguarding and se-

curing the maritime domain; managing the maritime envi-

ronment, optimizing the ECOWAS Maritime economy as

well as promoting maritime awareness and research among

Member States.

In his address to the meeting’s opening ceremony, the

Gambian Minister of Interior, Mr. Ousman Sonko, empha-

sized “the need for greater cooperation, coordination of ef-

forts and effective complementary roles by all maritime

stakeholders” to harness

the abundant resources of

the region’s maritime do-

main.

He recalled the emer-

gence of transnational

maritime crimes in the

Gulf of Guinea, and the

intervention of the United

Nations and the ECOWAS

40th Ordinary Summit of

the Heads of State and

Government in Abuja last

February, which mandated the Commission to develop a

holistic EIMS and synergy with the Economic Community

of Central African States (ECCAS) and the Gulf of Guinea

Commission (GGC)..

The Minister urged the experts to contribute their exper-

tise in refining the draft EIMS.

In her address read by the Head of Regional Security

Division, Col. Abdourahmane Dieng, the ECOWAS Com-

missioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Mrs.

Salamatu Hussaini Suleiman, outlined the threats of illicit

maritime activities in the West African coast and the Gulf

of Guinea, and urged stakeholders to adopt a holistic ap-

proach in combating the scourge.

She said the Banjul meeting was a follow-up to the re-

cent Joint Summit in Yaoundé of the Heads of State and

Government of ECOWAS, ECCAS and the GGC on Maritime

Safety and Security in the Gulf of Guinea.

Three Strategic documents were endorsed at that sum-

mit, namely, a Political Declaration; a Memorandum of Un-

derstanding and a Code of Conduct on the repression of

piracy, armed robbery and other illicit maritime activities in

West and Central Africa.

Also speaking at the opening ceremony of the Banjul

meeting, the Permanent Secretary in Gambia’s Ministry of

Defence, Mr. Yusthe Atupha Dibba, highlighted the timeli-

ness of the validation of the EIMS, which he described as

fundamental to the peace and security architecture of

ECOWAS Member States, given the impact of terrorism,

piracy, armed robbery at sea, as well as drug trafficking

and other transnational maritime crimes in the region.

He stressed the importance of the UN Security Council

Resolutions 2018 (2011) and 2039 (2012) in facilitating the

collaborative engagement of ECOWAS, ECCAS and the Gulf

of Guinea Commission (GGC) in developing.

The development of an Integrated Maritime Strategy for

the region commenced in 2011 with the rise of piracy,

armed robbery at sea and other transnational maritime

crimes in the Gulf of Guinea with the Republic of Benin

recording heavy losses in revenue. The subsequent call for

UN’s intervention by Benin President Boni Yayi resulted in

the Security Council’s Resolu-

tions 2018 (2011) and 2039

(2012).

Participants at the Banjul

meeting which was presided

over by Ivorian Navy Rear Admi-

ral Djakaridja Konate, included

experts from the ministries of

defence, foreign affairs, environ-

ment, infrastructure and fi-

nance of ECOWAS Member

States.

ECOWAS Bulletin 4th - 10th November, 2013 Volume 28/2013 3

PUBLISHED BY!

DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATION, ECOWAS COMMISSION ; 101 YAKUBU GOWON CRESCENT, ASOKORO, ABUJA-FCT. NIGERIA Tel: (234-9) 314 7641/314 7647/ 314 4227-9 Fax: (234-9) 314 3005/ 314 7641 Email: info@ecowas.int, Website: www.ecowas.int

Representatives of the Ivorian Government at the meeting

Col Dieng speaking to a journalist at the end of the meeting

ECOWAS TO DEPLOY HUMANITARIAN SUPPORT TEAM TO MALI

E COWAS is to de-

ploy twenty (20)

members of its Emer-

gency Response Team

(EERT) to Mali within

the framework of a

regional Humanitari-

an Assistance for the

country which exiting

political and security

crises.

Four of the ECO-

WAS EERT members

being deployed will be

seconded to the UN

refugee agency, UNHCR to support its voluntary repatria-

tion and reintegration programme in Mali.

The field deployment for three months beginning from

18th November 2013 would be preceded by a four-day Pre-

Deployment Training (PDT) in the Malian capital, Bamako.

The PDT is being supported by the UN Office for the

Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), which is

funding the training and also providing all-round flight

tickets for the selected ECOWAS EERT members from their

respective countries.

The Malian Minister of Labour, Social and Humanitarian

Affairs is to inaugurate the EERT deployment, while an

ECOWAS delegation to be led by the Commissioner for Hu-

man Development and Gender, Dr. Adrienne Diop would

discuss the modalities and way forward on the ECOWAS

humanitarian support with Malian authorities.

Following the military coup in Mali in 2012 and the sepa-

ratist insurgency in the north of the country, ECOWAS led

efforts in mobilizing an African-led support mission, AFIS-

MA, which transformed into a UN mission, MINUSMA last

July as part of international initiatives to resolve the Malian

crises.

The restoration of relative peace paved the way for the

holding of successful Presidential elections in Mali in July/

August 2013, monitored by ECOWAS and other Interna-

tional Observers.

Municipal polls are expected to follow later this month

in the country, which still faces some humanitarian chal-

lenges.

90 CYCLISTS FOR 3RD ECOWAS CYCLING TOUR

S ome 90 cyclists will be participating in the 3rd ECOWAS

International Cycling Tour which opens on 13 November

2013.

According to Mr. Francis Njoaguani, Director of ECOWAS

Youth and Sports Development Centre (EYSDC) based in

Ouagadougou, the five-day race over four stages and 450

kilometers will start from Nigeria’s National Stadium, La-

gos, and terminate in the Ivorian commercial capital, Abid-

jan on 17th November.

The four stages are Lagos-Cotonou; Ouidah-Lome; Accra

-Cape Coast and Aboisso-Abidjan, with three motorized

transfers in between.

“The caravan will traverse five countries - Nigeria, Benin

Republic, Togo, Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire,” the Director said,

adding that there would be cash prizes and trophies for

winners at various stages and the overall tour winner in

both individual and team categories.

There will also be prizes for sprints and the best young

cyclist of the tour, with provisions made for insurance cover

for the cyclists by ECOWAS, the sole sponsors of the event.

Each of the 15 Member States will field a team of six cy-

clists to be accompanied by five officials and the regional

organization is working with Member States through their

sporting authorities to provide some of the logistics for a

hitch-free event.

The competition was initiated by ECOWAS to further pro-

mote the ideals of regional integration and free movement

of persons across various borders.

It is also in line with

the Vision 2020 for

transforming from an

“ECOWAS of States to

an ECOWAS of People.”

Burkina Faso won

the first and second edi-

tions of the competition,

held in 2009 and 2012,

respectively.

“ Only when the cat is

dead, can the mouse like

its nose.”

…… Cape Verde..…..

PUBLISHED BY!

DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATION, ECOWAS COMMISSION ; 101 YAKUBU GOWON CRESCENT, ASOKORO, ABUJA-FCT. NIGERIA Tel: (234-9) 314 7641/314 7647/ 314 4227-9 Fax: (234-9) 314 3005/ 314 7641 Email: info@ecowas.int, Website: www.ecowas.int

ECOWAS Bulletin 4th - 10th November, 2013 Volume 28/2013 4

EDITORIAL TEAM Sunny Ugoh ** Ag. Director Communication Paul Ejime ** Editor Doscof Aho ** Internal Communication Officer Uwem Thompson ** Information Officer Amamata Sulaiman ** Information Graphics Officer David Oduyingbo ** Photos Sani Malgwi ** Photos

Routes:- Lagos-Cotonou, Ouidah-Lome, Accra-Cape Coast and ends with

Aboisso-Abidjan