West African leaders concluded their 68th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government on Sunday with strong condemnations of recent political instability in the region, including a direct rebuke to former Gambian President Yahya Jammeh for audio statements made from exile that they described as threats to peace and security.
The summit, chaired by Sierra Leone’s President Julius Maada Bio and hosted by Nigeria, addressed economic resilience, delays in monetary integration ahead of the planned ECO single currency launch, and advancements in regional infrastructure, such as the West African Power Pool’s synchronization of 15 countries’ grids.
However, the final communiqué highlighted deepening concerns over democracy and security amid ongoing terrorist threats in the Sahel and Lake Chad Basin.
A key focus emerged on The Gambia, where leaders singled out Jammeh, exiled in Equatorial Guinea since 2017 after refusing to cede power following his 2016 election defeat.
The Authority deemed Jammeh’s recent audio pronouncements, circulated via WhatsApp to supporters and announcing intentions to return and interfere in Gambian politics, as a clear breach of his asylum conditions.
These messages, including vows to return in November 2025 and assertions of ongoing influence over his party, were labeled a direct threat to The Gambia’s peace, security, and social cohesion.
Leaders warned Jammeh of the consequences for violating his terms of exile and for attempting to destabilize the country.
Crucially, the communiqué reaffirmed that the 2017 joint ECOWAS-African Union-UN declaration facilitating Jammeh’s departure provided no immunity from accountability for alleged human rights violations during his 22-year rule from 1994 to 2017, which included torture, disappearances, and extrajudicial killings documented by Gambia’s Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission.
President Adama Barrow attended the summit, underscoring regional solidarity as The Gambia continues post-Jammeh reforms.
The statement comes amid heightened tensions, with Jammeh’s audio recordings rallying loyalists and raising fears of unrest in the small nation, still healing from authoritarianism.
Elsewhere, ECOWAS condemned a November coup in Guinea-Bissau that overturned recent elections and an attempted coup in Benin on December 7, swiftly repelled with ECOWAS Standby Force support from Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, and Sierra Leone.
Leaders pledged enhanced counter-terrorism funding, election support, and institutional reforms to bolster governance.
As West Africa grapples with geopolitical pressures, the summit signaled a recommitment to integration, youth empowerment, and zero tolerance for unconstitutional changes.
