The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is considering deploying technology, including Artificial Intelligence (AI), to enhance its counter-terrorism and peace operations in the region, The Nation has learnt.
Chairman of the governmental experts’ validation meeting on logistics concept and depot policies for the ECOWAS Standby Force, Air Commodore Sampson Eyekosi, disclosed this at the closing ceremony of the meeting in Abuja on Friday.
The discussions come ahead of the commissioning of the ECOWAS Logistics Depot in Lungi, Sierra Leone, later this year.
The meeting focused on refining logistics frameworks for Peace Support Operations (PSO) and adopting policies to ensure the efficient deployment of the Standby Force in response to security threats across West Africa.
Eyekosi, a Nigerian Air Force officer, said the proposal to integrate advanced technology into the Standby Force’s operations would be presented for ratification by the Heads of State and Government in March.
He said: “We want to leverage technology and fight against terrorism, insurgency and other threats we see, even climate change. We need technology such as artificial intelligence, drones, and other forms of technology.
“We need to harness them as much as possible, working as a whole of the community, bringing our expertise, early warning, humanitarian issues, youth and women, everybody having a part to play so that we can ensure peace and security.”
Another resolution, he said, is the local sourcing of military hardware, saying that the body would need to look inward for the supply of most of the needed military equipment for counter terrorism and peace operations.
He added, “For example, in Nigeria, we talk about CNG. We can use green and renewable energy so that we have less carbon footprints even when we deploy. We don’t go and pollute the place because we are operating there. So these are some of the initiatives, even from Nigeria, the presidential initiative on gas. We can export it even for peace and security operations.
“Our vehicles can run on gas during operations, our cooking, and our energy needs it. So it’s interlinked in one way or the other. Weapons, of course, Daikon is there, but remember, it is tied to each country. You cannot force your weapon on any other person. But when we deploy with our own equipment that we produce locally, our vehicle manufacturing companies of various types, we can buy from them and deploy with them weapons and food and everything. We need all the logistics. We need to tap from what we have first rather than importing from different countries. We can’t rely on them. We must rely on ourselves.”
The chairman also said the issue of funding was a top priority, adding that the meeting encouraged the ECOWAS to look at other sources of funding, including the private sector.
“Essential issues are about funding, because you know everything centers around money. So one of the resolutions is encouraging the Commission on options to raise funds, bringing in the private sector, encouraging member states to be able to support logistics that are required for operations.
“Member states contributing, the private sector contributing and harnessing our abilities, not waiting for other parties to come and support us. Of course, we’ll still partner with them, but we must take ownership. We must take charge. Peace and security is first our responsibility. We must play our part before we expect others to support us.”
The media and other stakeholders must all work together, proper information dissemination, proper communication, so that we can achieve the aim of peace and security in West Africa.
Eyekosi further gave an overview of the five day gathering on the validation meeting on the ECOWAS Standby Force (ESF) Logistics Concept and ECOWAS Logistics Depot Policies.
“For the past five days, we’ve been able to brainstorm as experts in logistics, administration, project management, and what the region needs for peace and security. When we go for peace support operations, logistics is crucial. The airport has been constructed physically in Sierra Leone.
“So, we have now deliberated to perfect the documents that will guide day-to-day operations so that things are done seamlessly, everybody knows what they’re supposed to do, know how much logistics will contribute together and how we employ them to support effective and efficient peace support operations in West Africa.”
He also expressed optimism that the efforts will yield positive results in addressing the surging security challenges in West Africa.
“We need to work together, and this is what we are doing. The Standby Force has planning elements of this mixture. So you must have your head, your organization in place first, and you start working a process. There’s a roadmap, which this is one of which we have achieved the documentation. In Sierra Leone, there’s infrastructure in place now. The depot has been completed. We need to finance it. We need to equip it. We need to commission it formally so that it gets operationalized.
”So it’s a work in progress, and so far, in my involvement in the whole process, we are making good progress. We need to carry our political leaders, the heads of state and authority of governments in West Africa, carrying everybody along.
“It’s a whole-of-society approach. Every stakeholder playing a part to ensure that we bring all our competencies, our experiences, in one way or the other, including the media, to ensure that we have peace and security in West Africa and the ECOWAS logistics depot becomes operational fully this year.”
