Dr. Omar Tourey, President of the Economic Community of West African States Commission, ECOWAS, stated on Monday that Mali, Burkina Faso, and the Niger Republic will suffer significant losses should they decide to pull out of the regional bloc.

According to Tourey, the proposed unified forces to combat terrorism and other security challenges in the region would suffer if the three countries left.

In addition to the $500 million projects, the president of the Commission said that people of the three nations would no longer be able to start businesses or use their ECOWAS passports.

At the official start of the first Ordinary session of the 6th ECOWAS Parliament in Abuja on Monday, Tourey made these remarks.

According to reports, the three Sahel countries had earlier in January officially communicated their decision to quit the regional bloc after they were slammed with sanctions over military takeovers.

The Commission had lifted the sanctions on them and encouraged them to return.

Tourey, speaking on the situation on Monday, said, “Our region is facing the risk of disintegration with Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger notifying ECOWAS of their intention to exit.

“Their exit will worsen insecurity and free movement, and deal a deadly blow to ECOWAS, especially regarding our joint efforts towards forming a regional standing force which all member states have agreed to.

“It will also lead to international isolating of these three countries and they will also not enjoy ECOWAS support for any international position they aspire for.”

Tourey stated that if Mali, Burkina Faso, and the Benin Republic insisted on leaving ECOWAS, they would forfeit some rights, such as the ability to register businesses and the ability to use ECOWAS passports.

“ECOWAS will stop all ongoing projects totaling over $500m dollars in their countries.

“ECOWAS Bank for Reconstruction and Development alone has projects worth nearly $321m dollars in these countries.

“Their quitting will also lead to the closure of regional institutions in their countries, and this will lead to the loss of many jobs by their citizens.”

Tourey urged the parliamentarians to make meaningful contributions towards integrating West African countries as one entity.

In his own words, Justice Edward Asante, the President of the ECOWAS Court of Justice, urged the parliament of the bloc to make sure that Mali, Burkina Faso, and the Niger Republic retract their decisions to leave the regional organisation.

Asante stated that he was aware that the parliament had been in contact with high-ranking representatives of those governments through their members to guarantee their long-overdue return to ECOWAS.

He called the endeavour a commendable endeavour that the parliament ought to be applauded for and should continue under the sixth legislature.

“This is so that we can continue our relentless march towards the development of our region by leveraging our rich human and material resources.

“I can assure you that the court remains available to provide whatever support that is necessary in furtherance of this and other initiatives that will preoccupy the members during the sixth legislature through its standing, joint and ad hoc committees,” Asante said.

The ECJ President mentioned that the session’s inauguration coincided with a period of “seismic political developments in the region, which if not appropriately managed, have grave implications for the region.”