The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), meeting at a summit in Abuja, opened the way, on Sunday, December 10, for a reduction in its sanctions against Niger, by conditioning it to a “short transition” before a return of civilians to power. A committee composed of the presidents of Benin, Togo and Sierra Leone will negotiate with the Nigerien military regime the commitments to be implemented before a possible relaxation of sanctions, announced the president of the ECOWAS commission, Omar Touray.

These soldiers, who overthrew elected President Mohamed Bazoum in a coup on July 26, have since ruled the country within the National Council for the Protection of the Fatherland (CNSP). In response, at the beginning of August, ECOWAS members imposed heavy economic and financial sanctions on Niamey.

“Based on the results of the engagement of the committee of heads of state with the CNSP, the authority will gradually ease the sanctions imposed on Niger,” Mr. Touray declared after the summit. But “if the CNSP does not comply with the results of the engagement with the committee, ECOWAS will maintain all sanctions,” he added. The regional organization wants Niamey to commit to “a short road map for the transition” towards “the rapid restoration of constitutional order”, i.e. the return to civilian rule.

Role of mediator

This decision by ECOWAS follows the visit, on Friday, to Togo of the military leader of Niger, General Abdourahamane Tiani accompanied by some of his ministers. A few days before, Niamey had asked Togolese President Faure Gnassingbé to play a mediator role. “Tiani is ready to discuss the duration of the transition and the situation of Mohamed Bazoum,” who has been sequestered in Niamey in his residence since July 26, a Togolese source said of these discussions.

At the opening of the summit, Mr. Touray declared that “the military authorities in Niamey have unfortunately shown little remorse in clinging to their untenable positions, taking hostage not only President Bazoum, his family and members of his government, but also the people of Niger”.

The US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Molly Phee, said on Sunday that she had been invited to participate in summit discussions aimed at enabling the return of democratic rule to Niger and helping to make the Sahel more on.

Historically a key partner of the West in the fight against jihadist groups, Niger has demanded the departure of French troops which has already begun, while the United States still has military personnel there.

Strengthen cooperation

Of the fifteen ECOWAS member countries, four are now led by soldiers who came to power through coups d’état since 2021: Mali (2021), Guinea (2021), Burkina Faso (2022) and Niger ( 2023).

With the military regimes of Mali and Burkina Faso, that of Niger created the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) in order to strengthen their cooperation. “This shadow alliance seems intended to distract attention from our mutual quest for democracy and good governance,” Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, who chairs ECOWAS, denounced on Sunday. While calling for “renewing dialogue with countries under military rule with realistic and short-term planned transitions”.

The proliferation of these military regimes, which call democracy into question and risk destabilizing the entire region, worries ECOWAS. The withdrawal of the French army from the Sahel has reinforced fears that jihadist attacks will spread to the Gulf of Guinea states: Ghana, Togo, Benin and Ivory Coast. And this, while Sierra Leone and Guinea-Bissau recently experienced what the authorities presented as coup attempts.