The Directorate of Agriculture and Rural Development of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the national and regional stakeholders of the agriculture sector, the African Union, and representatives of the sector’s six stakeholder groups convened to officially launch the fourth Biennial Review on agricultural growth and transformation and to start the conversation on the next ten years for the ECOWAS Agriculture Policy (ECOWAP) and Post Malabo Agenda. The event, which incorporated online and offline participation with a total of 98 participants, was held on the 16th and 17th of May 2024. It featured distinguished facilitators, experts, and ECOWAS officials in a detailed agenda to promote in-depth analysis, discussion, and action planning.

The Director of Agriculture and Rural Development of ECOWAS, Alain SY TRAORE, during his opening remarks, highlighted the importance of the Biennial Review process, setting the tone for the discussions with a subsequent presentation by Mrs. Fatmata Lucia SEIWOH, ECOWAP/CAADP Monitoring&Evaluation Programme Officer, Directorate of Agriculture and Rural Development of the Fourth Biennial Review Report, indicating that ECOWAS was rated for the second time as the best-performing region with five countries progressing well.

Regional BR Expert Professor Raphael BABATUNDE presented an in-depth analysis of the Biennial Review Report from the first to the fourth edition, the performance of ECOWAS countries in the four BR rounds based on the overall scores, and the assessment of the BR Process. At the same time, Dr. Mbaye YADE of AKADEMIYA2063 mentioned potential post-BR activities, drawing comparisons and insights to guide future strategies. During the meeting, Prof. Aminou Arouna, one of the regional experts, moderated an open discussion, which allowed participants to share their perspectives and provide feedback on the presented reports. The ceremony climaxed with the recognition of countries that were progressing well and the presentation of the two awards won by ECOWAS for BR 3 (2021) and BR 4(2023).

AU representative Mme. Panduleni ELAGO provided an overview of the Post Malabo consultations, conveners and co-conveners of the technical working groups, UPCOMING RECs-led regional consultations, and the support needed for the Post Malabo CAADP process. At the same time, Mrs. SEIWOH highlighted the perspectives for ECOWAP after 2025.

Dr. Olawale OLAYIDE, representative of the Post Malabo coordinating team, presented the objectives, agenda, and structure for West Africa’s physical meeting slated for June 12-14, 2024, in Abuja, Nigeria.

Several discussions were held on how to make ECOWAS and Member States perform better in the fifth BR process come 2025. The team elaborated on the need for policy dialogue, addressing data challenges, and strengthening the capacity of country agricultural data management committees. The Director recognized the efforts of technical and financial partners, especially USAID, European Union, FAO, and AGRA, for their confidence in the Directorate’s M&E team from 2015 to date in this process.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

Senior Trade Officials from ECOWAS Member States gathered in Abuja, Nigeria, from 15th to 16th May 2024 to consider regional instruments towards enhancing regional economic integration and trade.

The overall objective of the 2-day meeting was to review, validate, and recommend regional trade policy instruments to the Ministers of Trade and Industry. In addition, the Meeting also considered the region’s participation at and the outcome of the 13th World Trade Organisation (WTO) Ministerial Conference (MC13).

In his opening remarks on behalf of Madame Massandjé TOURE-LITSE, Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture, Mr. Kolawole Sofola, the Director of Trade for ECOWAS, reaffirmed the Commission’s dedication to strengthening economic integration and tackling current trade issues. “Our concerted efforts today are geared towards ensuring our trade policies respond to the changing realities, and promote prosperity in our region,” said Mr. Sofola. He urged Member States to build on various regional, continental and multilateral Decisions and Instruments, including the ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme, the African Continental Free Trade Area, as well as the outcome of the 13th WTO Ministerial Conference.

In her opening remarks on behalf of the Minister of the Industry, Trade and Investment of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, H.E. Dr. Doris Uzoka-Anniete, Madam Zulaikha Abdullahi, Deputy Director – Intra-African Trade, welcomed the Senior Trade Officials to Abuja on behalf of the Government and People of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and commended the ECOWAS Commission for organising the meeting. She expressed appreciation to Member States for their commitment towards promoting regional integration on trade. “The deliberations at this meeting are to set a foundation for the upcoming Joint Meeting of Ministers of Trade and Industry, where critical decisions will be made to advance our collective trade agenda,” stated H.E Dr Doris Uzoka.

Consideration of the outcomes of the thirteenth WTO Ministerial Conference, the status of implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), as well as the status of the Economic Partnership Agreement with the European Union were amongst the discussions in the meeting.

The meeting adopted a recommendation to establish a Regional Working Group on the Tariff Renegotiations at WTO, as well as to conclude a cooperation agreement between the ECOWAS Regional Competition Authority (ERCA) and Member States aimed at strengthening competition policy and enforcement mechanisms across the region.

The meeting was attended by Senior Trade Officials from ECOWAS Members States, Officials from the ECOWAS and UEMOA Commissions and the WTO.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

At the conclusion of the three-day meeting of Tourism Experts and the Private Sector on the Monitoring and Evaluation Mechanisms of ECOTOUR 19-29, participants from Member States adopted several key resolutions. The private sector was tasked with formulating a request for funding for ECOTOUR 19-29 activities, identifying and seeking the support of Technical and Financial Partners (TFPs), and initiating and signing a partnership agreement with the ECOWAS Commission with a view to implementing a robust and sustainable regional tourism for economic growth.

For Member States, it was agreed to provide national classification commissions and structures responsible for resource regulation, and to organize awareness-raising sessions for industry stakeholders on the new regulations.

The ECOWAS Commission committed to organizing capacity-building sessions for national classification commissions and regulatory structures, establishing a harmonized tourism satellite account for member countries, disseminating and making available the new regulations to Member States, and conducting a mid-term evaluation of ECOTOUR 19-29.

These resolutions were included in the Final Communique from the meeting, which was adopted by regional experts on May 16, 2024, in Abuja, Nigeria. The communique was signed by the Chairperson of the meeting, represented by Mrs. Ruth NDAM, Director of Hospitality&Travel Trade at the Nigerian Tourism Development Authority.

In his closing remarks, Dr. Anthony Luka ELUMELU, Director of the Private Sector at the ECOWAS Commission, speaking on behalf of Mrs. Massandjé TOURE-LITSE, Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture, expressed heartfelt appreciation to all participants for their valuable contributions to the success of the meeting and their ongoing efforts in implementing ECOTOUR 19-29.

He reaffirmed the ECOWAS Commission’s commitment to fully implementing the meeting’s recommendations, with the goal of transforming the region into a tourist hub that will enhance the regional economy and promote integration across the board.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

As the fighting in Sudan between the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) began in April 2023, the displaced people of Al-Hasahisa camp, in Zalingei, capital of Central Darfur state, found themselves caught in the crossfire.

According to the United Nations, by November, the camp had been besieged by RSF for months, leaving the injured unable to seek medical care outside the camp, and blocking water and food supplies from reaching people.

The Hasahisa camp, which once housed an estimated 50,000 people — most already displaced in the early 2000s — eventually emptied as people managed to flee the relentless bombing, leaving behind damaged brick homes and ghost-like streets. With nowhere else to turn, they’ve now sheltered for months on end in looted and abandoned schools, banks, fire stations and other camps across the city.

Widespread displacement and survival without assistance

On the night of 2 November, Aissa and her family boarded donkey carts and fled Hasahisa camp. Most of Aissa’s belongings had been stolen, leaving her with only a mattress, which was later lost on the road. She followed her mother and children as they led the way.
 
“We were chased and forced to leave,” says Aissa. “Some of our men were killed. Others were detained. Our things were taken and stolen. As we were leaving, we were stopped [by armed men] and had to wait until the morning. They tied [people] up and beat the young boys.”
 
For over six months, Aissa and her family have resided in a single shipping container at the ravaged Zalingei fire station. Like 6.5 million other displaced people in Sudan, they primarily depend on humanitarian aid that remains unavailable in many places. Surviving with unreliable jobs here and there, Aissa and her family don’t have proper access to water, food or essential services, including medical care.

“There is no way to make any money,” says Aissa. “We just go out and roam around the city. If you find someone you can do laundry for, you wash it and try to get some money.”

Across the street from the fire station, Najwa and her three children have taken shelter in the city’s looted bank with 30 other displaced people from Hasahisa camp. She’s created an illusion of home there: bank safes used as closets, bricked-up windows, once meant for sunlight, and windowsills now holding a few tattered bags and wilted plants.

“We are living in these conditions without a roof, and we have no food,” says Najwa, pointing at the torn sheets draped above the lobby. “But we’ve never received any assistance, not even a bar of soap. Soon the rainy season will come, and we don’t know where to go.”

Cut off from access to healthcare and medicine

In the heart of the city, the University of Zalingei — once a centre for students of medicine, agriculture and technology — now lies desolate. Bales of hay for donkeys are stored in the auditorium, while campus buildings are connected by laundry clotheslines.

Transformed into a makeshift shelter, more than a thousand people are living in the school´s classrooms and offices, mostly displaced from Hasahisa camp. Mainly farmers, they are now unable to regularly cultivate crops and make an income. The community relies on each other because of the absence of humanitarian assistance.

“We all make contributions and anyone participating can share [medication],” says Mohammed, one of the first to flee to the university. “We share with the community and treat the patients.”

Only 10 minutes away, Khadija waits for her daughter Malaka to be discharged from the Zalingei Teaching Hopistal. It’s the first day Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) teams have re-opened the rehabilitated emergency room, and Malaka is one of the first patients. Displaced and forced to sell her remaining belongings to earn money, Khadija hasn’t been able to buy medication for her daughter.

“I travelled for over an hour to Zalingei Teaching Hospital to receive treatment for my child, who tested positive for malaria,” says Khadija. “In Hasahisa camp, we would receive medication for free. Here in Zalingei, it’s not the same. But today, we received free medication.”

Supporting a collapsed health system

Amid the large-scale violence in Sudan, healthcare workers and facilities have been attacked and looted, leaving large portions of the health system damaged or non-functional.  The sole remaining specialised healthcare facility in Central Darfur state, Zalingei Teaching Hospital, has also been looted multiple times during the war.

After another looting in May 2023, the Ministry of Health staff did their best to keep the hospital functional by mobilising volunteers across the city. One of them was nurse Assma. A few weeks after a looting in May, the hospital was attacked once again: this time resulting in the death of a patient.

“I was bringing a patient to the hall of the operating theatre when the doctor was shot in the neck,” says Assma. “He was doing a caesarean. After this, the patient passed away in the hallway.”

To restore specialised care in the state, MSF teams are providing specialised care at the Zalingei Teaching Hospital and supporting the Ministry of Health by training and incentivising staff, as well as rehabilitating the emergency, maternity and paediatric departments.

In April, our teams provided over 900 emergency consultations, nearly 400 paediatric admissions, almost 100 safe deliveries, and treated over 50 children for malnutrition in the inpatient therapeutic feeding centre.

“The war has completely disrupted people’s access to healthcare in Sudan,” says Victor García Leonor, MSF emergency coordinator in Sudan. “Medicine and food prices have soared making it inaccessible for people — especially the displaced — and most health facilities are no longer functioning properly. At the same time, the country is facing a humanitarian void, which is further exacerbating the huge unmet healthcare needs.”

Despite Sudan being one of the world’s largest displacement crises, many humanitarian organisations have not returned since evacuating after the onset of the war last year. Today, after more than one year since the start of the war, Sudan continues to face a humanitarian void.

MSF continues to call on all warring parties and belligerents to respect the special protections that healthcare workers and medical facilities are provided under International Humanitarian law, as well as ensure safe humanitarian access to all areas of Sudan, without exception, and stop blockages of supplies and staff.

In addition, to ensure humanitarian assistance reaches people, the United Nations must urgently scale up and focus on clear results related to increasing access so that they actively contribute towards enabling a rapid and massive scale-up of humanitarian assistance. 

MSF currently works in and supports more than 30 health facilities in nine states in Sudan: Khartoum, Al Jazirah, White and Blue Nile, Al Gedaref, West Darfur, North, South and Central Darfur, and Red Sea. Our teams have also recently intervened in Kassala. We run activities in both SAF- and RSF-controlled areas. We provide trauma care, maternal and paediatric care and treat malnutrition alongside other healthcare services. MSF teams are also supporting Sudanese refugees and returnees in South Sudan and eastern Chad.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Médecins sans frontières (MSF).