Manage Resources Prudently, FG Advises ECOWAS Commission

The Federal government has advised the new leadership of the Economic Community of West African States ( ECOWAS) Commission, to be prudent in the management of resources in the pursuit of development and full integration of the sub-region.

Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Khadija Ibrahim, who gave the advice at the handing over ceremony of the President of ECOWAS Commission, Marcel De Souza to Jean-Claude Brou, in Abuja, particularly harped on the need for the new leadership to focus more on budget improvement and institutional reforms, if it must meet the needs and aspirations of the ECOWAS citizens.

"We must focus on budget that impacts positively on the citizens as emphasised in the institution's report, which stated that 60 per cent of the budget must be devoted to such programmes," she said.

Mrs. Ibrahim, while admitting that ECOWAS had achieved a lot in the last four decades of its existence, however said much still needed to be done.

"In the course of this journey, the organisation has recorded some achievements which have made its membership and programmes to be desirable to all and sundry," she said.

"ECOWAS, just like any other regional organisation, has also had its fair share of challenges, some of which are still evident till date. Some of these include human trafficking in the Sahel Region especially Libya, transhumance and the negative activities of cattle herders, poverty, among others.

"It therefore lies within you to mobilise your team to proffer solutions to these and other challenges. You are also to encourage, and where necessary, to work with national institutions on regional programmes and projects that can fast-track the process of integration and improve the living standard of the people of the region", she added.