President Muhammadu Buhari has called for regional and global efforts to eradicate the various challenges confronting the Economic Community for West African States (ECOWAS) regional body.
President Buhari, who spoke yesterday in Abuja at the opening session of the 48th Ordinary Summit of ECOWAS, noted that the region should continue to enhance democracy as its system of governance and work with its partners to address major challenges.
He listed security and climate change among the major challenges confronting the region.
The 48th session also concised with ECOWAS 40th anniversary.
President Buhari said the region had recorded concrete achievements, which have made the body a model to others.
He noted that despite the achievements, some of the challenges threatened integration, peace and security.
He said: “Over the years, our organisation has recorded concrete achievements which loudly speak for themselves. ECOWAS has indeed been universally acclaimed as a model regional economic community.
“In spite of the significant achievements, our community still faces numerous challenges. While some militate against the integration drive, others continue to pose risks to peace and security as well as political stability in the region. There are also structural and administrative challenges in running e commission that equally require serious attention.
“Regional and, indeed, global solidarity is vital in our efforts to counter these threats. To this end, we must continue to enhance our system of governance and, working with our partners, accelerate the implementation of our joint initiatives and mechanisms created to address these daunting but not insurmountable risks. As we do so, we should not relent in our efforts to engage with member-states coming out of crises in order to help them consolidate on the achievements made.”
President Buhari blamed climate change on some of the woes that befell the region.
He noted that the region would not be able to “reverse or stop some of these consequences, as they require huge investment of resources far beyond our capabilities”.
ECOWAS, he the President advised, “should therefore continue to press for international assistance and work with the rest of the world to protect the environment”.
But the President said this should be done without losing focus on “our industrial development objectives”.
“Our efforts to fast-track regional integration should also be informed by the requirement for clean source of energy,” President Buhari added.