Yar'Adua elected ECOWAS chairman

  1. Posted on Tuesday 23 December 2008 - 08:50
    Murtala
    Image of Murtala
    Murtala Mohamed Kamara, Africa News reporter in Freetown, Sierra Leone
    Nigeria's President Ya'Adua has been elected chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). He was elected at the 35th Heads of State Summit and Government of ECOWAS which ended in the Nigerian federal capital Abuja. He takes over from Burkina Faso's president Blaise Campore.
    President Umaru Yar'adua
    Yar’Adua becomes the second Nigerian President to head the regional body whiles his predecessor former president Olusegun Obasanjo became the first ECOWAS chair from that country.

    Speaking earlier at the opening session of the summit Yar’Adua praised the ECOWAS commission over the level of stability in the region single out the recent attempt to topple Guinea Bissau’s president Joćo Bernardo Vieira according to the Leadership newspaper.

    Presdient Yar’Adua also commended Ghana and Guinea Bissua for holding peaceful elections. The one day summit also gave opportunity to ECOWAS first ladies to meet and discuss issues affecting the region including human trafficking.

    Nigeria’s first lady Hajiya Turai Yar’Adua who is also the chair for ECOWAS first ladies said “as mothers, there is the need for us to raise our voices against vices that have affected the region.’’

    At the end of the summit ECOWAS Leaders adopted plans for the development of the region among them the establishment of a Regional Electricity Regulatory Authority to be based in the Ghanaian capital Accra and the creation of a Regional Center for Renewable Energy Efficiency to be based in Cape Vade.

    The summit also addressed the global financial crisis, regional peace and security with particular reference to Cote D’Ivoire, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Mali and Niger.

Latest News

  1. OPINION: Welcome to African Green Revolution24/05For the past century and a half, Africa has tried various agricultural approaches without much success.
  2. Egyptians vote in historic election23/05Egyptians began voting freely on Wednesday for the first time to pick their president in a wide open election that pits Islamists against men who serv…
  3. Africa Day 2012 - a moment for reflection and…22/0525th May is Africa Day. For many years it has been a celebration of African unity. It dates back to 1963 when the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) …
  4. South Africa's African agenda21/05The Deputy President of the Republic of South Africa, Kgalema Mothlanthe paid a rare visit to Ghana in April at the invitation of John Dramani Mahama …
  5. Women struggle to rinse hunger, poverty stains21/05Just looking at her one clearly appreciates that she is old and frail therefore in need of support for food, clothing and shelter to live comfortably …
  6. Climate Climate change affects migratory birds…21/05Changes in the climate globally have affected the movement of both migratory and resident species of birds, Nature Uganda has said.
  7. Ghana: Foreign retailers cited for currency…18/05The Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA) is attributing the sharp depreciation of the Ghana cedi against major currencies to the illegal activiti…
  8. Kenya: Community radio brings succour to…18/05Korogocho, a slum in northeastern Nairobi with 100,000 inhabitants, had many of the ingredients for a political explosion similar to those that rocked…
  9. Veld fires 'flame' Zimbabwe's…16/05Over the years, Zimbabwe has experienced the scourge of veld fires destroying property worth thousands of dollars.
  10. Liberia commends ECOWAS for support14/05The induction training of pioneer Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Volunteers for Liberia kicked off in Monrovia, with the Deputy Mi…
  11. Vanishing Lake Chad puts 30m lives at risk14/05As you approach the Lake Chad basin from Maiduguri, in north-eastern Nigeria, the evidence of despair is telling.
  12. Heavy rains cause havoc in Kenya14/05Heavy Rainfall continued to wreak havoc across the country leading to the suspension of relief food in some parts of the country as most roads in Turk…
  13. Zimbabwe: Growth points lie dormant14/05The Zimbabwean government mooted the concept of growth points in the 1980s as a means of decongesting cities and towns.
  14. Sierra Leone improves in infant mortality11/05Sierra Leone has improved in infant mortality cases according to Save the Children- World Motherhood index 2012 report. The West Africa country descri…
  15. Zimbabwe: Resettled farmers fail to utilize…10/05Resettled farmers in Zimbabwe are failing to utilize land due to inadequate farming inputs and lack of resources.
News archive