Sierra Leone’s President, Julius Maada Bio, has been elected as the new Chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Authority of Heads of State and Government.
He succeeds Nigeria’s President Bola Ahmed Tinubu served for two terms.
The decision was made at the 67th Ordinary Summit of the regional bloc, which was held on Sunday in Abuja, Nigeria. President Bio will serve a one-year term in the rotating chairmanship.
President Bio, a former Brigadier General, briefly served as military head of state in 1996. He transitioned to civilian leadership, winning the presidential election in 2018 and securing re-election in 2023 amidst significant political contestation.
His ascension to the ECOWAS chairmanship comes at a crucial juncture for the regional body. President Bio inherits a complex geopolitical landscape marked by lingering post-election tensions in his own country, including alleged coup attempts and the continued exile of his predecessor, former President Bai Koroma, in Nigeria.
Currently, four of ECOWAS’ 15 member states are under military rule. The formation of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) by Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, and their subsequent withdrawal from ECOWAS, has further compounded the challenges facing ECOWAS.
President John Dramani Mahama, who participated in the summit in Abuja, is expected back home tonight.
