According to DAILY POST reports, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) convened its 63rd Ordinary Summit in Abuja, Nigeria, without the participation of three of its member states - Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger.
This comes as the trio have formally inaugurated their own regional alliance, the Sahel Alliance, effectively severing ties with the broader economic community.
The ECOWAS meeting, presided over by Nigeria's President Bola Tinubu who serves as the current chairman, opened with Tinubu thanking his fellow leaders for their support over the past year.
However, the main focus of the summit is expected to be the discussion on how to address the departure of the three Sahel countries from the regional bloc.
Just a day before the ECOWAS summit, the military rulers of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger officially announced the formation of the Sahel Alliance during a meeting in Niamey, Niger.
The Sahel Alliance, also known as the Alliance of Sahel States, was first announced by the three countries last September.
Through this new pact, they have committed to cooperating in the event of external aggression against any of the member states.
The three countries left ECOWAS in January this year after the regional bloc took action against the respective military governments that had overthrown the democratically elected leaderships in those nations.
Speaking during the Sahel Alliance summit on Saturday, Niger's General Abdourahamane Tchiani described ECOWAS as a threat to the military-led countries.
He stated that the three countries would run their alliance free of foreign influence, prioritizing the interests of their people.
Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger have been experiencing political instability in recent years. Burkina Faso had a coup in September 2022, toppling the civil democracy, while Mali saw a military takeover in August 2021, and Niger's government was overthrown in July 2023.