New ECOWAS Chair Visits Mali, Fuels Hope of Return to Regional Body
Michael Olugbode in Abuja
Just days before formally taking over the leadership of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Senegalese President, Diomaye Faye, has embarked on a high-stakes diplomatic mission to Mali.
The move is widely seen as an attempt to rebuild fractured ties between the regional bloc and the Alliance of Sahel States (AES).
The visit to Bamako, coming against the backdrop of deepening divisions between ECOWAS and the military-led governments of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, has sparked fresh optimism that dialogue may replace confrontation in efforts to restore regional unity after months of political estrangement.
