The Economic Community of West African States ECOWAS has announced that Heads of State of its member states have agreed to raise $2.4 billion to establish a standby counter-terrorism force to address security threats within the sub-region.
Ambassador Abdel-Fatau Musah, Commissioner of Political Affairs, Peace, and Security of ECOWAS, disclosed this during the opening of a three-day consultative meeting of commandants from the three designated ECOWAS Training Centres of Excellence.
Musah claimed that ECOWAS has already devised the operational protocols and idea for the force, which will be a rapid response battalion that can assault terrorist bases.
The ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State has directed member nations to contribute $1 billion to launch the standby force. Ministers of Defense and Finance will meet to finalize financial arrangements.
Musah applauded Nigeria’s efforts to degrade the Boko Haram terrorist group, claiming they no longer pose a threat to the country’s peace and security. Mali, which hosts one of the ECOWAS training centers, was absent from the conference, possibly due to its recent decision to leave the regional bloc.
The counter-terrorism standby force was established after ECOWAS leaders, particularly Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu, requested a rapid deployment mechanism to address the growing terrorist threat in West Africa.
