JUST IN: ECOWAS Lifts Travel, Economic Sanctions On Niger, Others 

JUST IN: ECOWAS Lifts Travel, Economic Sanctions On Niger, Others 

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has decided to lift economic sanctions on Niger, Mali, and Burkina-Faso with immediate effect following extensive discussions at an extraordinary summit in Abuja.

The ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government made several resolutions during the summit, as announced by Dr. Omar Touray, the President of the ECOWAS Commission.

The sanctions that have been lifted include the closure of land and air borders to Niger, the establishment of a no-fly zone for commercial flights, freezing of financial transactions between ECOWAS states and Niger, and freezing of Niger’s assets at EBID.

Additionally, the travel ban on members of the military junta and their families has been lifted.

According to Touray, these decisions were made with a focus on humanitarian considerations, particularly due to the upcoming month of Ramadan.

Furthermore, ECOWAS has lifted sanctions on the appointment of Malian citizens to ECOWAS positions and has extended an invitation to Guinea and the other countries involved to participate in future technical consultative meetings.

ECOWAS has also urged member states that were planning to leave the organization to reconsider their decision in light of the benefits that their citizens receive from being part of the community.