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FILE PHOTO: ECOWAS Commission, Abuja office
The Economic Community of West African States has announced that $4 million has been allocated to support Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Mali, and neighbouring countries grappling with the spillover effects of terrorism.
The Director of Humanitarian and Social Affairs at the ECOWAS commission, Dr Sintiki Tarfa-Ugbe, made this announcement at the opening of a two-day strategic engagement workshop in Abuja on Tuesday.
Tarfa-Ugbe emphasised the ongoing challenges faced by West African countries, including conflict, terrorism, climate change, and food insecurity, and reaffirmed ECOWAS’s commitment to bolstering member states’ resilience and recovery efforts.
“We know that our countries continue to face several challenges, including conflict, terrorism, climate change, and food insecurity, but our organisation, the ECOWAS commission, continues to support our member states in strengthening their resilience and recovery from some of these challenges.
“This year, the ECOWAS Commission has committed $2.6 million to support persons of concern within our region—those displaced, refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants. Additionally, you know that our region, especially the Sahel, continues to battle terrorist attacks, resulting in many victims.
“As part of our humanitarian response to victims of terrorism, $4 million has been committed to providing support for the frontline states of Nigeria, Mali, Burkina Faso, as well as the neighbouring countries that are bearing the spillover effects of terrorism, such as Ghana, Benin, Togo, and Côte d’Ivoire,” she stated.
Tarfa-Ugbe highlighted ECOWAS’s robust humanitarian response mechanism, which includes rigorous monitoring and evaluation of its initiatives.
She cited successful interventions, such as in Togo, where ECOWAS partnered with the Civil Protection Agency and the World Food Programme to enhance agricultural productivity and provide cash assistance for small-scale businesses.
“We have seen firsthand the positive impact of our support in countries like Togo, Gambia, and Liberia,” Tarfa-Ugbe said.
“Our assistance has enabled communities to recover and strengthen their livelihoods, which is crucial for building long-term resilience.”
She added that ECOWAS’s humanitarian efforts in 2024 also include $900,000 in aid for flood and food assistance in Gambia, as well as ongoing support in Liberia aimed at improving food and nutrition security.
Tarfa-Ugbe said, “We have gone to Gambia and provided food and nutrition support, as well as flood assistance, amounting to about $900,000. Our team was there, and they saw people being given cash assistance.”
