African leaders are determined to uproot terrorism and unconstitutional changes in government, ECOWAS and African Union ambassadors have said.

The envoys made this known in separate interviews at the end of a consultation meeting between the ECOWAS Mediation and Security Council (MSC) and the AU Peace and Security Council (PSC) on Thursday in Abuja.

They said terrorism and unconstitutional change in governance were the two major existential threats facing the continent.

For instance, Abdel-Fatau Musah, ECOWAS commissioner on political affairs, peace and security, disclosed that ECOWAS’ MSC and AU’s PSC were already intensifying numerous efforts to resolve Africa’s asymmetric challenges.

He said such efforts were being vigorously carried out under the AU’s 1999 Convention against Terrorism and ECOWAS’ 2019 plan of action to eradicate terrorism.

“In order to deal effectively with terrorism, we need actually to go kinetic to make sure that terrorists are routed out of our region, and in order for them not to come back, we have to reestablish the social contract between the populations and the government,” he said.

Also speaking, Musa Nuhu, Nigeria’s permanent representative to ECOWAS and MSC chairman, said ECOWAS was leveraging synergy with AU, sister regional economic groups, and global partners to tackle Africa’s terrorism and unconstitutional change of government challenges.

“We are talking about coordination and synergy in approaching so many emerging issues as the continent is facing unconstitutional changes of government, terrorism, banditry, and other menaces,” Mr Nuhu explained. ECOWAS as a region needs to work with other regional economic groups, such as the Economic Community of Central African States, ECCAS, which is our immediate neighbour, and the African Union, which is the umbrella body.”

Jainaba Jagne, Gambia’s permanent representative to AU and chairperson, AU-PSC, also identified terrorism, violent extremism and resurgence of unconstitutional changes of governments as Africa’s main scourges that must be decimated.

“So, the ECOWAS Mediation and Security Council is working very closely with the African Union’s Peace and Security Council to address the emerging threats that we have on the continent.

“We have terrorism, we have extreme violence, we have unconstitutional changes of government, so all these points are areas that we need to collaborate, synergise and work to ensure that we combat all of these scourges that we are now experiencing on the continent,” said the Gambian representative.

Bankole Adeoye, African Union’s commissioner for political affairs, peace and security, said terrorism financing was a critical terrorism enabler, which the AU was addressing “to rid the continent of terrorism and silence the guns.”

He added, “The root causes of terrorism are well known, and the African Union, ECOWAS and other regional bodies are really addressing them. One of the enablers of terrorism is sponsorship and financing, mainly from external sources and, in some cases, local.

“Therefore, you need an effective financial intelligence system that looks at the global picture and working with the UN office on counter-terrorism. Working through our own African Union Centre on the Study and Research on Terrorism, we are addressing this curse because it is necessary to nip it in the bud, and once you cut off that lifeline, most of the terrorists will not be able to survive.”

(NAN)