ECOWAS Leaders Close All Borders With Mali As Junta Extends Election To 2025

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has said that it is “unacceptable” for the military junta’s transition committee in Mali to shift its democratic election from 2022 to December 2025.

The newly proposed calendar for a transition was submitted to ECOWAS authorities by the military on 5 January 2022.

Recall that Colonel Assimi Goita, the country’s current leader, was part of the mutinying soldiers that engaged in a coup in August 2020 thereby removing the country’s Prime Minister, Boubou Cisse, and the President, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, from office.

ECOWAS quickly suspended Mali from benefiting from the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) pending when the junta handed over to a democratic leadership.

Ever since, there have been calls by ECOWAS, the African Union and the United Nations regarding a return to democracy in Mali.

But based on the latest development, the regional body in a statement on Monday vowed to tighten sanctions to bring the military to its knees.

The additional sanctions are as follows:

a) Recall for consultations by ECOWAS Member States of their Ambassadors accredited to Mali;

b) Closure of land and air borders between ECOWAS countries and Mali;

c) Suspension of all commercial and financial transactions between ECOWAS Member States and Mali, with the exception of food products, pharmaceutical products, medical supplies and equipment, including materials for the control of COVID-19, petroleum products and electricity;

d) Freeze of assets of the Republic of Mali in ECOWAS Central Banks;

e) Freeze of assets of the Malian State and the State Enterprises and Parastatals in Commercial Banks;

f) Suspension of Mali from all financial assistance and transactions with all financial institutions, particularly, EBID and BOAD.

Reacting, Nigeria’s Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, who represented President Muhammadu Buhari at the ECOWAS 4th Extraordinary Summit in Ghana, praised the member states for imposing additional sanctions on the military junta in Mali.

“With its latest stand against unconstitutional seizure of power, leaders of member states in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have shown strong resolve and commitment to issues of good governance and democracy in the sub-region,” he said as stated by his spokesperson, Laolu Akande.