Emmanuel Bensah, a policy analyst of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the African Union, has called on the leadership of the regional bloc to open dialogue aimed at mending relations with Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger.

These countries officially requested to withdraw from ECOWAS in December 2024, accusing the regional body of failing to protect and defend its members while becoming a threat to their sovereignty.

The tensions arose after ECOWAS imposed sanctions on the three countries due to a series of coups and the political instability that had plagued them.

Despite these strained relations, Burkina Faso’s leader, Ibrahim Traoré, attended the swearing-in ceremony of John Dramani Mahama on Tuesday, which was also graced by ECOWAS Chairperson Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

In an interview with Citi News, Emmanuel Bensah urged ECOWAS to leverage Mahama’s relationship with Ibrahim Traoré to explore avenues to restore peace and rebuild trust among the parties.

“It is an opportunity for President Mahama and ECOWAS to seize to see what to do to rope them back in, riding on the back of the popularity that Mahama now has.

“I just want to believe that they will do the needful and have some important backdoor conversations with President Mahama and his team on what role that he or his colleagues might play in bringing these countries back.”