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The trio of Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso have finalised plans to form a confederation marking a significant geopolitical shift in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) region.
The new project tagged the Confederation of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), enforced the nations' departure from their colonial ruler, France, and a turn towards closer ties with Russia.
The announcement was made after a meeting of the three nations' foreign ministers in Niamey, Niger's capital on Friday, May 17, 2024.
Bakary Sangare, Niger's Foreign Minister, confirmed the finalisation of the draft text that outlines the institutionalisation and operationalisation of the AES.
“The objective was to finalise the draft text relating to the institutionalisation and operationalisation of the Confederation of the Alliance of Sahel States,” he said.
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According to Sangare, the Head of State of the three countries will formally adopt the text at an upcoming summit whose exact date has not been specified.
“We can consider very clearly, today, that the Confederation of the Alliance of Sahel States has been born,” declared Mali’s Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop.
Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso dump ECOWAS
The latest move by the three Saheel nations, who are currently under military rule, indicates their resolve to discontinue their membership in ECOWAS.
The regional bloc has made efforts to bring the trio back into its fold after they announced their decision to exit on Sunday, January 28, 2024.
They said the regional body had “moved away from the ideals of its founding fathers and pan-Africanism.”
This came after months of sanctions imposed on Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso by ECOWAS following the forceful takeover of democratically elected governments in the countries.
However, the bloc later lifted the sanctions in February 2024 following the intervention of Nigeria's former military Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon.